The Board remands the claims for a left knee meniscal and ACL instability with recurrent gastrocnemius muscle rupture and degenerative arthritis, and left knee strain as the VA examination reports are inadequate for rating purposes.
The deciding factor: The June 2021, August 2022, and September 2022 VA examination reports are inadequate for rating purposes due to lack of evidence supporting ROM estimates during flare-ups and other required findings.
- Claimed conditions
- left knee meniscal and anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) instability with recurrent gastrocnemius muscle rupture and degenerative arthritis, left knee strain
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- March 21, 2025
- Citation
- A25026395
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.
- Granted
The Board granted service connection for left knee strain, right knee strain, right wrist strain, and TBI. The Veteran's PTSD rating was remanded for further development.
- Remanded (sent back)
The appeal is remanded to correct pre-decisional duty to assist errors, including the failure to obtain relevant treatment records and provide adequate VA examinations.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board remands the claims for a rating in excess of 10 percent for bilateral hip and knee disabilities, as well as a TDIU claim, to ensure adequate VA examinations are conducted.
- Partly granted
The Board granted service connection for left hip iliopsoas tendonitis, right knee strain, and left knee strain as secondary to lumbosacral strain. Service connection was also granted for cannabis use disorder as secondary to mental health conditions of PTSD, major depressive disorder with alcohol use disorder, and TBI. However, the Board denied an initial disability rating in excess of 70 percent for PTSD and granted a separate disability rating of 40 percent for TBI.
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