The Board has remanded the Veteran's claim for service connection of a right knee disability, as secondary to his service-connected left knee disability. The case is being returned for an addendum VA opinion that considers the evidence of abnormal gait and its relation to the Veteran's left knee condition.
The deciding factor: An additional VA opinion is needed to address whether the Veteran's right knee condition was due to or aggravated by his service-connected left knee disability, considering the evidence of abnormal gait observed during examinations and testified to at a hearing.
- Claimed conditions
- Left Knee Degenerative Arthritis, Internal Derangement of Left Knee
- How they argued it
- Secondary to another service-connected condition
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- May 13, 2021
- Citation
- 21029522
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 21029522.
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 Board has granted earlier effective dates for service connection of peripheral vestibular disorder with dizziness/vertigo, depressive disorder, left knee degenerative arthritis, and right knee degenerative arthritis all from July 4, 2023.
- Granted
The Board has restored the Veteran's disability ratings for right and left knee degenerative arthritis from 10 percent to 10 percent effective January 8, 2025.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board has restored the prior ratings for right and left knee degenerative arthritis, but has remanded the issues of increased ratings due to an inadequate VA examination.
- Granted
The Veteran's residuals of right knee total replacement have been granted a maximum schedular rating of 60 percent effective June 1, 2020. The Veteran's left knee degenerative arthritis has also been granted an increased rating to 60 percent effective June 1, 2020.
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