The Veteran's service-connected left knee and right ankle disabilities precluded him from obtaining or maintaining gainful employment consistent with his educational and occupational background, granting a TDIU on an extraschedular basis.
The deciding factor: The Veteran's left knee disability caused functional impairment with occupational activity that would require prolonged walking, limiting substantially gainful employment to light work. His prior employment as a radiology technician required heavy lifting up to 100 pounds and being on his feet for long periods, which he was unable to perform due to his service-connected disabilities.
- Claimed conditions
- Left knee disability, Right ankle disability
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- May 7, 2025
- Citation
- 25006187
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.
- Partly granted
The Board granted service connection for chronic headaches, CFS, dermatosis, bilateral RLS, a lumbar spine disability, and sleep apnea but denied a compensable evaluation for allergic rhinitis.
- Denied
The Board denied service connection for various conditions, including diabetes mellitus, type II, coronary artery disease, congestive heart failure, hypertension, asthma/lung disease, vision disability, bilateral plantar fasciitis, leukocytosis, kidney disease/kidney stones, enlarged prostate, sleep apnea, rheumatoid arthritis, lumbar spine disability, right ankle disability, and left ankle disability.
- Partly granted
The Board denied the claims for an initial compensable rating for left ear sensorineural hearing loss, service connection for a right ear hearing loss disability, and a left eye disorder. However, it granted service connection for a back disability and radiculopathy of both lower extremities as secondary to the back disability.
- Partly granted
The Board granted service connection for a right knee disability and PTSD, remanded several claims including those for a left knee disability, right shoulder disability, hypertension, craniomandibular disorder, and a compensable rating for residuals of a right femur fracture.
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