The Veteran's appeal for an increased disability rating for his service-connected right knee impairment is remanded due to the need for additional medical evidence and a more comprehensive examination.
The deciding factor: The VA examinations provided were inadequate, particularly regarding functional loss due to pain and the effects of medication on the condition. The Board finds that further evaluation is necessary to determine the current severity of the Veteran's right knee impairment.
- Claimed conditions
- Impairment of the right knee
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- January 14, 2026
- Citation
- A26003431
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 A26003431.
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.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board has remanded the Veteran's claims for entitlement to increased ratings for his right and left knee disabilities due to a lack of recent VA examination, which is needed to assess current severity.
- Denied
The Board denied a higher rating for the Veteran's right knee disability, but granted a separate 20 percent rating for his meniscal tear and a 10 percent rating for genu recurvatum from October 15, 2015 to February 20, 2020. The Veteran is not entitled to additional ratings under 38 C.F.R. § 3.324.
- Granted
The Veteran's service-connected knee disabilities, heel condition, and ORIF have been granted effective May 23, 2002. The initial ratings for each condition are now in line with the current disability levels.,Effective May 23, 2002, the Veteran is entitled to a 10 percent rating for impairment of both knees (subluxation), limitation of flexion of both knees, and right heel plantar fasciitis with Achilles bursitis. The Veteran's ORIF condition also received an initial compensable rating.,The effective date for these ratings has been set at May 23, 2002, the date on which VA determined that the conditions were service-connected.
- Denied
The Board found that the Veteran's service-connected right and left knee disabilities do not warrant a disability rating higher than 10 percent, as there is no evidence of ankylosis, recurrent subluxation or lateral instability, dislocated semilunar cartilage with frequent episodes of 'locking', pain, and effusion into the joint, malunion of the tibia and fibula with moderate knee or ankle disability, or arthritis. The Veteran's symptoms include pain but no additional functional loss due to pain, weakness, incoordination or fatigue.
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