The Board has remanded the claims for increased ratings for bilateral knee disabilities due to a duty to assist error in obtaining an examination that did not adequately consider all of the Veteran's symptoms.
The deciding factor: The VA examination report prior to the January 2020 rating decision on appeal did not adequately consider all of the Veteran's symptomology associated with his bilateral knee disabilities, including instability and a meniscal condition. A new examination is necessary to properly assess the severity of the service-connected bilateral knee disabilities.
- Claimed conditions
- left knee tendonitis with patellofemoral pain syndrome with arthritis, right knee tendonitis with patellofemoral pain syndrome with arthritis, meniscal condition (not service-connected), right knee surgical scar
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- January 27, 2026
- Citation
- A26007648
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 A26007648.
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.
- Denied
The Board denied the Veteran's claim for retroactive compensation from December 1, 2008, to November 14, 2022, as VA properly calculated his combined disability evaluations and there is no unpaid compensation due.
- Denied
The Veteran's claim for service connection for depression (claimed as acquired psychiatric condition/mental condition) is denied due to lack of a formal or informal claim prior to September 25, 2015.,The Veteran's claim for SMC based on housebound criteria is denied because he did not meet the statutory requirement of having a single service-connected disability rated at 100% and additional disabilities rated at 60%.,The Veteran's claim for basic eligibility to DEA is denied as his TDIU was not based on a single disability, thus failing to satisfy the statutory requirement of a total rating for purposes of 38 U.S.C. § 1114(s).,Claims for increased ratings for left and right knee surgical scars are denied due to noncompensable (zero percent) ratings under Diagnostic Code 7802.
- Granted
The Veteran's recurrent nose bleeds are rated at a 10 percent disability rating. The right knee and left knee surgical scars, along with the left big/great toe surgical scar, are each rated at noncompensable (zero percent) disability ratings.
- Partly granted
The Board granted a disability rating of 30 percent for left lower extremity neuropathy but remanded the claims for service connection and increased ratings for other conditions.
Free starter guide for your own claim
Reading this because you were denied or under-rated? Get the plain-English next steps — your appeal options, the deadline that protects you, and how appeals like yours turn out. One email, no spam.
We will only use this to send the guide. No spam, unsubscribe any time. We never sell your information.
We are not the VA. Veterans’ Rights is an independent resource built for veterans. We are not the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs, not part of the government, and not endorsed by any government agency.
This is general information, not legal advice. For advice about your own situation, talk to a VA-accredited representative — many help for free.