The Board denied service connection for right knee, left knee, right ankle, and lower back disabilities due to a lack of evidence linking these conditions to service or within one year post-service.
The deciding factor: The VA examinations found no chronicity of the claimed conditions related to service, with some indicating that any pre-existing conditions were not aggravated by service.
- Claimed conditions
- Right Knee Disability, Left Knee Disability, Right Ankle Disability, Left Ankle Disability, Lower Back Disability
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- October 20, 2020
- Citation
- 20067701
What this means for you
A denial is a starting point, not the end of the road. You can see why this claim fell short — and, if you are still inside the one-year window, the appeal lanes that may remain open to you.
What you can do next
Related decisions
Other Board decisions on a similar condition or argued the same way.
- Partly granted
The Board granted service connection for obstructive sleep apnea, left knee disability, and right knee disability. The claims for urinary frequency disability and residuals of a cholecystectomy were denied.
- Denied
The Board denied service connection for various disabilities and denied higher ratings for several service-connected conditions.
- Partly granted
The Board granted increased ratings for the Veteran's left and right knee disabilities, including separate ratings for instability and meniscal conditions, but denied higher ratings for flexion limitations in both knees. The Board also granted a total disability rating based on individual unemployability due to service-connected disabilities prior to December 1, 2021.
- Partly granted
The Board granted a 30 percent evaluation for tension headaches effective September 13, 2022, but denied earlier effective dates and service connection for various conditions.
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