The Board denied service connection for left knee disability, including chondromalacia patella, finding that the evidence did not support a link between the condition and service.
The deciding factor: The VA examiner found no chronic left knee disorder prior to the Veteran's discharge from service and noted that there was no evidence of left knee complaints until nearly five years after his service ended.
- Claimed conditions
- left chondromalacia patella
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating
- Not verified here — check the original decision
- Decision date
- October 15, 2020
- Citation
- 20067024
Veterans Law Judge
Decisions by this judge: 2,036 · Granted: 27% (granted or partly granted, in the indexed decisions on this site)
Judge attribution: 2025 complete; earlier years partial.
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. Read the original VA decision (opens in a new tab) using citation 20067024.
What this means for you
A final Board denial may be appealed to the U.S. Court of Appeals for Veterans Claims, generally within 120 days of the Board mailing date. A Supplemental Claim with new and relevant evidence is a separate option. Another Higher-Level Review of the Board decision is not available. Check your own notice: this historical decision does not set your deadline.
What you can do next
Use your own notice and decision stage. A remanded issue is not a final court-appealable denial. VA review guidance and CAVC filing instructions (U.S. federal; reviewed October 7, 2026).
Related decisions
Other Board decisions on a similar condition or argued the same way.
- Whole decision: Dismissed
The Veteran withdrew his appeal, and the Board dismissed it.
- Whole decision: Denied
The Board denied service connection for right and left chondromalacia patella, finding that the evidence does not support a link between these conditions and the Veteran's active service.
- Whole decision: Denied
The Board denied the Veteran's claim for a temporary total evaluation due to hospitalization because the hospitalization did not exceed 21 days, even when combining both hospitalizations at Harris Regional Hospital and Mission Hospital.
- Whole decision: Remanded (sent back)
The Board has remanded the case due to inadequate medical opinions and failure to address specific evidence. The Veteran's left knee disorder, including left chondromalacia patella, is being reviewed again for service connection.
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