The Board has remanded the Veteran's claims for service connection and temporary total rating due to insufficient medical opinions regarding the causes of his right knee plateau tibial fracture and total knee replacement. The issues are inextricably intertwined, so both must be addressed together.
The deciding factor: The VA examiners did not provide adequate opinions on whether the Veteran's right knee plateau tibial fracture was caused or aggravated by his service-connected disabilities, specifically arthritis, meniscal tear, and ACL injury.
- Claimed conditions
- right knee plateau tibial fracture, right knee arthritis, meniscal tear, ACL injury
- How they argued it
- Secondary to another service-connected condition
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- January 21, 2020
- Citation
- 20004695
What this means for you
A remand is not a loss. The Board sent the case back for more development — often a new exam or missing records — before making a final decision. Many remands later end in a grant, and the decision spells out exactly what the Board wanted to see.
What you can do next
Related decisions
Other Board decisions on a similar condition or argued the same way.
- Denied
The Board denied the veteran's claims for increased ratings and service connection, finding that the evidence did not support higher ratings or service connection for the claimed conditions.
- Granted
The Board granted service connection for right knee arthritis, finding that the Veteran's condition is related to his active duty service.
- Partly granted
The Board granted service connection for left knee arthritis, right knee arthritis, and tinnitus. The increased evaluation claim for pes planus was denied, as was the increase in rating for the right wrist fracture. The reduction of the right wrist rating from 10 percent to 0 percent was found improper, restoring the 10 percent rating.
- Partly granted
The Board denied a rating in excess of 10 percent for right knee arthritis and a separate 30 percent or higher rating for the period from January 1, 2020, to July 23, 2025, but granted a 10 percent rating for right knee slight recurrent subluxation and lateral instability.
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This is general information, not legal advice. For advice about your own situation, talk to a VA-accredited representative — many help for free.