The Board granted service connection for a bilateral hand disability, bilateral knee disability, lumbar spine disability, and right shoulder disability based on the evidence showing that these conditions are related to the Veteran's active service.
The deciding factor: The positive nexus opinion from a private physician supported by medical literature was found to be probative in establishing a link between the Veteran's current disabilities and his service.
- Claimed conditions
- bilateral hand disability, bilateral knee disability, lumbar spine disability, right shoulder disability
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- January 6, 2023
- Citation
- 23001057
What this means for you
A grant means the Board agreed the veteran was entitled to the benefit. Decisions like this show the kind of evidence and arguments that tend to succeed for claims like it.
What you can do next
Related decisions
Other Board decisions on a similar condition or argued the same way.
- Denied
The Board denied service connection for various conditions, including prostate cancer and related disabilities, urinary incontinence, sleep apnea, hypertension, varicose veins, lumbar spine disability, hip arthritis, shoulder arthritis, ankle arthritis, knee strain, knee replacement, and hand arthritis. The only condition granted was a 10 percent rating for a fracture of the right proximal first metacarpal.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board remands the service connection claim for a bilateral knee disability to correct a pre-decisional duty to assist error, including scheduling an additional VA examination.
- Denied
The Board denied service connection for multiple conditions, including bilateral hearing loss and various musculoskeletal issues, as well as an initial rating in excess of 0 percent for rhinitis. However, the Board granted a 70 percent rating for posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD).
- Partly granted
The Board granted service connection for right knee, right hip, and lumbar spine disabilities as secondary to the Veteran's service-connected left knee disability but denied a rating in excess of 30 percent for his left knee disability prior to April 25, 2019.
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