The Board remands the case for a new VA examination to determine the current severity of the Veteran's left knee condition, as well as an issue related to individual unemployability due to the same condition.
The deciding factor: The medical opinion provided was found inadequate due to failure to consider the Veteran's reported symptoms and the need for an updated examination given the progression of her condition since the last evaluation.
- Claimed conditions
- left knee internal derangement, degenerative joint disease (DJD), and instability
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- January 10, 2022
- Citation
- 22001096
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.
- 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 claim for service connection for a left knee condition (to include patellofemoral syndrome and DJD) is remanded for readjudication, as new and relevant evidence has been received sufficient to reopen the claim.
- Partly granted
The Board granted readjudication of the service connection claim for a thoracolumbar spine disorder, but remanded the claims for radiculopathy.
- Denied
The Board denied the veteran's claim for an effective date prior to April 5, 2022, for service connection of degenerative arthritis, DJD, and RPPS of both knees. The evidence did not show probative evidence of knee limited extension before this date.
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