The Board remands the claims for further development, including a new examination to determine the current severity of the Veteran's left knee disabilities and an examination to address the theory that sleep apnea is secondary to his service-connected left knee disabilities.
The deciding factor: Remand was necessary due to inadequate May 2022 VA examination and to address the reasonably raised theory of entitlement for sleep apnea being secondary to obesity, which in turn could be related to his service-connected left knee disabilities.
- Claimed conditions
- left knee osteoarthritis with limitation of flexion, left knee instability, left knee osteoarthritis with limitation of extension
- How they argued it
- Not specified
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- October 22, 2024
- Citation
- 24032102
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.
- Dismissed
The Board dismissed the appeal for service connection for bilateral knee instability and denied service connection for right and left knee instability, finding no nexus between the Veteran's knee conditions and his service or service-connected disabilities.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board remands the issues of entitlement to increased ratings for a thoracolumbar spine disorder and bilateral knee disorders due to the need for additional VA examinations.
- Denied
The Board denied restoration of the 30 percent ratings for left knee arthritis (flexion), left knee strain arthritis (extension), and left knee instability, as well as a 20 percent rating for left ankle chronic sprain. The Veteran's claims for increased ratings were also denied.
- Partly granted
The Board granted service connection for right knee gout and a rating of 50 percent for the Veteran's right wrist condition, while remanding several other issues related to his knees and instability.
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