Help! MEB Right Knee fighting findings

K

Kelly M

PEB Forum Regular Member
Registered Member
If anyone could give me some incite, I am going to request a formal board.
Back round info: 10 yr TSgt
2005 ACL reconstruction & meniscus repair by off base Dr.
2005-2007 Chronic knee pain and therapy - 1st pregnancy gained 70lbs
2008- Base gets an orthopedic surgeon - surgery removal of defective recalled bio-screw (found out 2011 screw was recalled)
2008-2010 Base ortho issued a series of knee injections (halgon & synvisc) over time
End of 2010-PCS'd
2011 still having knee pain referred to specialist
2011 - July scope for cartilage defect removed also found my leg alignment was off/bowed
2011 - Sept High tibial osteotomy (realignment with metal plate (never be able to run again) Dr stated that this was to prevent me from being in a wheel chair at the age of 40 I am currently 32
2012 - Jan cartilage replacement.

I saw the PEBLO before the holiday break and they want to offer me 10% DoD with severance & 30% VA for GERD/Tinitus/Lumbar strain. I read the report done by AFPC and it is missing the High Tibial osteotomy and the VA is missing my Osteoarthritis, cytic acne, & sinusitis.
I called my surgeon and told him what they diagnosed my knee as internal derangement and he flipped and said that was not the diagnosis of what is wrong with my knee.
 
I can never run again or do any physical activity, I have 2 small children and my interaction with them is limited. I am afraid to get pregnant because the weight gain will cripple me.
 
First I am sorry for your pain. I suffer with back problems and the daily pain is sometimes too much. I know it effects every aspect of your life.

I have to be honest with you too. I don't think you are going to get much budge on the knee conditions. They rate on range of motion in most cases and really don't care about the rest. Most people will tell you they get 10-20%. If somebody got higher in the same situation, please chime in.

With that said, it still is worth it to appeal. You have nothing to lose, as even if they lowered your rating, you still get the severance no matter what. It sounds like there was some stuff missed when they put your NARSUM together. If they VA did not rate those conditions, then it probably wasn't on your NARSUM. One other explanation would be they rated you at zero. Did they do that?

Opinions may vary, but what I would focus on in the board is the Osteoarthritis. You will need to get the PEB to rate it as unfitting and this would bump up your overall rating. Remember, DOD only cares about conditions that prevent you from doing your job. The cytic acne, & sinusitis is not going to be something DOD rates you unfit for. Go back through your paperwork and medical records and find the stuff that would prevent you from doing your job. This will be the stuff that increases your overall percentage. In my case, they first rated for only DDD of my lumbar spine. I appealed my NARSUM and they added the right leg sciatica. That was the difference between 20% and 30% which retired me.

It's a hard road and I understand what you are saying. The sacrafice of your body for service is something few understand. No matter what happens, you are going to need to find an exercise program that works around your disability. If you don't, yes your condition will worsen and make it even harder.
 
Thank you so much for your feedback I really appreciate it.
No those conditions were not even on my NARSUM but I did discuss it with the VA nurse that did my physical.
I have went through all my medical files and tab'd out everything that was diagnosed - I am also cross referencing the VA's CFR and they seemed to have missed a lot.
I called my surgeon and he is writing a letter in my behalf with medical files will the proper diagnosis of my knee. I love the military but these Dr's cant seem to get anything right.
 
Good, just get as much documentation as you can. Sadly a lot of people miss getting stuff added to the NARSUM stage. The NARSUM is the best place to correct stuff because it is the quickest and gives the PEB a very clear picture the first time. It also gives the VA everything they need to get ALL of your ratings done.

The problem is that a lot of people are in such a big hurry to get through the process, they just sign the NARSUM and move on. Then the PEB comes back with an incomplete and low rating and the shock sets in. Then they have to go FPEB to get it corrected. Unfortunately, the FPEB is a much longer process than it would have been to correct the NARSUM.

As I said, just hang in there and get all your ducks in a row. Good luck.

Joe
 
Hi Kelly! I am currently awaiting my ratings for my left knee which was the only condition found unfitting. I had Posterior Cruciate Ligment/Meniscus//Posterior Lateral Corner reconstruciton with a subsequent manual manipulation done as well. After conservative treatments failed (physical therapy) they wanted to go back into my knee and I said HELL NO. They already did too much damage. So anyway, they boarded me. They called it degenerative joint disease status post surgery with a 30% ROM. I appealed my NARSUM way back when (I started the process back in Jul 2012) saying they are downplaying my injury but that didn't go in my favor. So the waiting is killing me and I am not very optimistic about what my ratings will be. I am at Fort Drum, hit 17 years this month and I too have 2 small kids. Please let me know how yours turned out. I hope it goes in your favor. Take care!
 
the problem is that too many soldiers are getting wrong advice and are trying to abuse the system....I'm sorry you have a bad knee, many do and still work on a daily basis with bad joints.
 
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