The Board granted service connection for loss of sense of smell, loss of sense of taste, left testicular mass, and left knee total arthroplasty with an effective date of May 26, 2021. The right knee total arthroplasty was also granted as secondary to the left knee disability.
The deciding factor: The Board resolved reasonable doubt in favor of the Veteran by finding that his loss of sense of smell and taste had existed prior to his claim for a seizure disorder, and granted service connection based on credible reports of an in-service injury to both knees.
- Claimed conditions
- loss of sense of smell, loss of sense of taste, left testicular mass, left knee total arthroplasty, right knee total arthroplasty
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- 100%
- Decision date
- March 12, 2025
- Citation
- A25023156
Veterans Law Judge
Decisions by this judge: 1,828 · Granted: 32% (granted or partly granted, in the vetted decisions on this site)
Judge attribution: 2025 complete; earlier years partial.
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 A25023156.
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 Veteran's left knee total arthroplasty resulted in intermediate degrees of residual weakness, pain, or limitation. The Board found that a higher rating is not warranted as there was no evidence of severe painful motion or weakness.
- Dismissed
The Veteran's appeal for earlier effective dates and increased ratings has been withdrawn by the Veteran's attorney, resulting in the dismissal of the appeal.
- Denied
The Veteran's claims for service connection for loss of sense of taste, loss of sense of smell, and pelvic condition are denied. The claim for an acquired psychiatric disorder beyond unspecified trauma and stressor related disorder is also denied.
- Denied
The Board denied increased disability ratings for various conditions, including bilateral knee replacements and radiculopathies. The reduction of the 30 percent rating for cervical spine degenerative arthritis was also denied.
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