Potential Success

[twmapes74]

I have a question concerning service connection. I left the reserves in 2010 and within 14 months I was diagnosed with a torn meniscus and chondromalacia in both knees. In addition, I was diagnosed with tendonitis in my right ankle. I located my service medical record last November and I discovered that my recent diagnoses appear to correlate with injuries on active duty. The problem is that the injuries to my knees was from a car accident where I suffered lacerations to my knees. This was in 1996 and I believe that the chondromalacia are residuals from this accident. The tendonitis in my right ankle is a residual from a sprained ankle that I suffered before I left active duty in 2001. After leaving active duty in 2001, I went straight into the reserves and stayed in until 2010. Looking back I do remember pain in my knees sometime after pt and standing for long periods of time during ceremonies. Both of my ortho docs believed that my current conditions were related to my injuries while I was on active duty but were reluctant to put anything in writing. I have my C and P on the 23 but I am concerned about getting these service connected.

[ArNG11]

I have a question concerning service connection. I left the reserves in 2010 and within 14 months I was diagnosed with a torn meniscus and chondromalacia in both knees. In addition, I was diagnosed with tendonitis in my right ankle. I located my service medical record last November and I discovered that my recent diagnoses appear to correlate with injuries on active duty. The problem is that the injuries to my knees was from a car accident where I suffered lacerations to my knees. This was in 1996 and I believe that the chondromalacia are residuals from this accident. The tendonitis in my right ankle is a residual from a sprained ankle that I suffered before I left active duty in 2001. After leaving active duty in 2001, I went straight into the reserves and stayed in until 2010. Looking back I do remember pain in my knees sometime after pt and standing for long periods of time during ceremonies. Both of my ortho docs believed that my current conditions were related to my injuries while I was on active duty but were reluctant to put anything in writing. I have my C and P on the 23 but I am concerned about getting these service connected.

Read up on aggravation of a pre-existing condition. You most likely will need a doc to say this and say that they have reviewed your service medical records. The real kicker is was it mentioned in your entrance exam when you joined the reserves, and whether it was annotated in your exit exam as well. Do you have your SMR's? If not I would get them and politely ask your docs to consider writing you a nexus statement. If not, you could pay for IME/IMO and ask your docs again. They may be willing to do it then. JMO.

[twmapes74]

I do have my entire medical records from when I was active duty from 1994 to 2001. I do not have my reserve records from 2001 to 2010. I didn't have to have an entrance exam when I went into the reserves in 2001 because they just used my separation physical from active duty. I left active duty one day and the next day I enlisted in the reserves. On my separation physical they did annotate my ankle injury on the form but not my knee injury because at the time I was not having any problems with them. The ankle is probably the strongest of the items. My ankle guy did say that he believes that my current condition is related to spraining my ankle on active duty and he did put something in writing. My knee guy told me that he believes that the calcification in my knees were from the auto accident while I was active duty but he was kind of resistant to state that in writing. I do have all my private medical records related to the conditions I listed along with x-rays and MRIs and all of the doctors notes. I filed a FDC claim and after six months I was tired of waiting for a C and P and emailed Bob and within 3 days I had a C and P scheduled. At the same time, if the medical evidence is overwhelming for the current condition and there are injuries from active duty that correspond to the current condition, can the nexus be obtained at the C and P exam? It seems like the current attitude at the VA these days is that they are trying to get the right rating the first time and not later on appeal. I have had a couple of friends that have gotten 70 to 80% the first time recently with not much more evidence than me.