The Board remands the Veteran's claims for higher ratings for his left knee, left shoulder, and associated scar disabilities due to pre-decisional duty to assist errors.
The deciding factor: Examinations did not adequately discount the ameliorating effects of medication on functional limitations.
- Claimed conditions
- Total knee replacement, Left knee scar associated with left total knee replacement surgery, Painful left shoulder scar associated with rotator cuff surgery, Residuals of left rotator cuff surgery, Left shoulder scars associated with rotator cuff surgery
- How they argued it
- Not specified
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- November 4, 2025
- Citation
- A25095422
Veterans Law Judge
Decisions by this judge: 1,113 · Granted: 47% (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 A25095422.
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.
- Partly granted
The Veteran was granted a disability rating of 60 percent for a total knee replacement effective October 1, 2023. An initial disability rating in excess of 30 percent for an acquired psychiatric disorder was denied.
- Denied
The Veteran's service-connected disabilities do not result in physical loss of use of one or both hands or feet, permanent impairment of vision in both eyes, severe burn injury precluding effective operation of an automobile, ALS, or ankylosis of one or both knees or one or both hips. Therefore, the Veteran does not meet the eligibility criteria for financial assistance to purchase a vehicle and adaptive equipment.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board has denied the Veteran's claims for higher ratings for her residual scar and left knee disability. The case is being remanded to evaluate the severity of her left knee disability, including any residuals from total knee replacement.
- Denied
The Veteran's claims for increased ratings for his right knee disability were denied. The initial rating of 10 percent for right knee internal derangement prior to September 25, 2019 was denied, and the claim for a higher rating for total knee replacement from November 1, 2020 was also denied.
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