The Veteran's bilateral knee and wrist disabilities were initially granted service connection with noncompensable ratings effective April 29, 2016. The Board has granted earlier effective dates of April 29, 2016 for the 10 percent ratings assigned for each disability.
The deciding factor: The Veteran's exit examination records from January 2016 were not previously associated with the claims file when the June 2016 rating decision was issued. These records showed that the Veteran complained of bilateral knee and wrist pain at the time of his exit examination, supporting an earlier effective date.
- Claimed conditions
- left knee patellar tendonitis, right knee patellar tendonitis and patellofemoral pain syndrome with bursitis, residual status post left wrist ganglion cystectomy, right wrist bursitis, status post right wrist ganglion cystectomy
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- 10%
- Decision date
- March 18, 2026
- Citation
- A26024187
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 A26024187.
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.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board has determined that the VA opinions are inadequate and remands the case for a new examination to clarify the current diagnosis of the Veteran's left knee disability, assess whether it would be less severe without service-connected PTSD, and determine if obesity is aggravated by PTSD.
- Denied
The Veteran's initial and increased evaluations for knee conditions, including patellar tendonitis, MCL sprain and meniscal tear, and meniscal tear, were denied. Separate evaluations for right and left knee instability were granted.
- Denied
The Board has denied service connection for multiple conditions and denied higher initial ratings for several service-connected disabilities.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board remands the claims for further development and examination to ensure a complete evaluation of the Veteran's service-connected disabilities.
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