The Board denied service connection for a right hand disability, finding that the Veteran's current condition is not related to his in-service injury.,The Board also denied service connection for a right knee disability, concluding that the Veteran's current condition was not caused by his in-service pain.
The deciding factor: The VA examiner found no evidence of chronicity or continuity of symptomatology after separation from service and concluded that the Veteran’s current right hand disability is unrelated to his in-service injury.,The VA examiner also determined that the Veteran's current right knee condition was not caused by his in-service pain, attributing it instead to degenerative arthritis.
- Claimed conditions
- Degenerative arthritis and quadriplegia residual of a spinal cord injury, Arthritis, degenerative joint disease (DJD), apophysitis of the right knee with traction spurs, chondromalacia patella, and quadriplegic residual of spinal cord injury
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- November 10, 2020
- Citation
- 20072485
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.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board remands the claim for a higher rating for right knee strain to ensure that the estimated range of motion provided for repeated use over time and during flare-ups is sufficient for rating purposes.
- Partly granted
The Veteran was granted an initial disability rating of 40 percent for lumbosacral strain, DJD, from December 17, 1997 to June 3, 2022, and the effective date for service connection for bilateral lower extremity radiculopathy was also set at December 17, 1997. However, a higher rating or TDIU was denied.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board remands the claims for a rating in excess of 10 percent for right third toe disability and entitlement to TDIU due to outstanding evidence and further development.
- Partly granted
The Board denied service connection for an acquired psychiatric disability and tuberculosis, granted service connection for right ear hearing loss, and granted an earlier effective date for the grant of service connection for pulmonary fibrosis.
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