The Board has remanded the claims for bilateral hearing loss, right knee disability, and left knee disability due to insufficient medical opinions addressing their etiology. The Veteran's service records indicate he had knee problems in service, but his current disabilities may be related to post-service treatment or other factors.
The deciding factor: The VA medical opinions did not consider the Veteran's credible statements regarding his knee symptoms since service and misstated the evidence by stating that no complaints were documented until after many years of service. Additional VA medical opinions are needed to address the etiology of the current disabilities.
- Claimed conditions
- Bilateral Hearing Loss, Right Knee Disability, Left Knee Disability
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- July 18, 2023
- Citation
- 23039486
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 23039486.
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.
- Denied
The Veteran's service-connected knee disabilities are rated at 10% each, and the Board finds that higher ratings are not warranted based on the evidence of record.
- Denied
The Board has determined that the Veteran's bilateral knee disabilities are not related to his active service, and thus denied both claims for service connection.
- Granted
The Veteran's bilateral hearing loss is granted as service-connected. The claims for alcohol abuse and psychiatric disorder are remanded for additional development, including a VA examination to determine the nature and etiology of these conditions.
- Denied
The Board denied the Veteran's claim for service connection of a right knee disability, finding that there is no evidence to support an etiological relationship between his current condition and his military service.
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