The Veteran's claims for effective dates, service connection, and ratings are being remanded due to the need for additional VA treatment records and examinations.
The deciding factor: Additional medical evidence is needed to properly assess the Veteran's conditions and determine appropriate effective dates and ratings.
- Claimed conditions
- right knee osteoarthritis with patellofemoral pain syndrome, left knee strain with arthritis, meniscal tear, and anterior cruciate ligament tear
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- May 7, 2020
- Citation
- 20032136
This is a plain-language summary generated by AI from a public Board of Veterans’ Appeals decision. It can contain errors — always verify against the original. Look up the original decision on VA.gov (opens in a new tab) using citation 20032136.
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.
- Granted
The Veteran's service connection for left knee patellofemoral pain syndrome and right knee osteoarthritis with patellofemoral pain syndrome was granted effective August 2, 2017.
- Denied
The Board denied the Veteran's claim for a total disability based on individual unemployability (TDIU) due to his service-connected disabilities not meeting the threshold requirement for consideration of schedular TDIU. The Board found that the Veteran is able to secure and follow a substantially gainful occupation despite his bilateral knee disabilities.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board remands the claims for an initial rating in excess of 10 percent for a left knee disability, service connection for a neck disability, service connection for a right knee disability, and service connection for hypertension due to a pre-decisional duty to assist error.
- Partly granted
The Board denied service connection for a cervical spine condition and denied increased ratings for lumbosacral strain, right knee osteoarthritis with patellofemoral pain syndrome, left knee patellofemoral pain syndrome, and right lower extremity radiculopathy of the sciatic nerve. However, it restored the 20 percent disability rating for lumbosacral strain effective October 31, 2023.
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