Ankle decisions — 2001

The Board has denied the veteran's claim of service connection for a left ankle disorder, finding that there is no relationship between his current disability and any incident of his active military service.

The veteran's claims for increased evaluations for residuals of a left femur fracture and degenerative changes of the right ankle were denied as he failed to report for a scheduled VA examination without good cause.

The Board has determined that the veteran's left ankle disorder and left knee disorder are not related to service, and thus denied his claims for service connection. The increased evaluation claim was also denied.

The Board denied the veteran's claims for service connection and ratings for various disabilities, including residuals of a right elbow injury, headaches as due to undiagnosed illness, patellofemoral syndrome of both knees, chronic right ankle sprain, low back pain, and pulmonary restrictive disease.

The Board has granted a 40 percent disability rating for chronic lumbar strain and a 20 percent disability rating for chronic right ankle strain, both of which are currently rated at 10 percent.

The veteran's appeal is remanded due to the need for a new VA examination and additional development under the Veterans Claims Assistance Act of 2000.

The veteran's claim for service connection for residuals of a right ankle injury was denied by the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) Regional Office in Chicago, Illinois.

The Board has granted service connection for left and right ankle disabilities, each rated at 10 percent disabling effective from January 1, 1992.

The Board denied the veteran's claim for an earlier effective date for a compensable evaluation of his right ankle disability, finding that the increase in disability was not factually ascertainable prior to December 30, 1991.

The Board is requesting additional information from the National Personnel Records Center and the Marine Corps to determine if the claimant had service between August 1980 and February 1991. The appeal will be remanded for further development.

The Board has denied the veteran's claims for service connection for various conditions, including chronic malarial residuals, post-traumatic stress disorder, cervical spine disorders, dorsal (thoracic) spine disorders, left lower extremity disorders, chronic left ankle disorders, and chronic skin disorders. The RO was directed to verify the veteran's periods of active duty, active duty for training, and inactive duty for training with the Georgia Army National Guard and request all available service medical records associated with such duty.

The Board has determined that additional medical information is required to properly assess the veteran's service-connected disabilities, particularly his right knee disability. The case is therefore being remanded for further development.

The Board has granted a 10 percent disability evaluation for the appellant's service-connected residuals of right ankle fracture and denied his claims for service connection for lumbar spine, cervical spine, bilateral knee, and left ankle disorders.

The veteran's claims for secondary service connection have been denied as not well grounded. The RO is required to obtain the names and addresses of all medical care providers who treated the veteran for his disabilities of the left lower extremity since the VA examination in June 1999, and to provide a VA examination by an appropriate specialist to determine the nature and extent of his service connected disabilities of the left lower extremity. The RO must also review the claims file and ensure that all notification and development action required by the Veterans Claims Assistance Act of 2000 is completed.

The veteran's claim for service connection for PTSD was denied due to lack of verified stressors. The claims for increased evaluations for the left and right knee disabilities were also denied.

The Board denied the veteran's claims of service connection for left leg and left hand disabilities, as well as an initial compensable evaluation for his right ankle injury. The evidence did not support a finding that these conditions were related to his military service.

The Board has determined that new and material evidence has been submitted to reopen the veteran's claims for service connection of arthritis of multiple joints, but it is unclear whether this evidence supports a finding of service connection due to the mixed disposition.

The Board has denied the veteran's claims for service connection for residuals of dengue fever and a right ankle disorder due to lack of new and material evidence. The case is remanded for further development.

The Board found that the initially assigned noncompensable evaluation for residuals of a head injury with fracture and headaches was appropriate, as there were no objective findings supporting more than a noncompensable rating. The veteran's left ankle disorder claim is remanded due to incomplete development.

The Board has determined that the veteran's claims for increased ratings and service connection are denied as there is no evidence of hypertension meeting the criteria for a higher rating under the applicable regulations, and the other conditions do not meet the requirements for direct service connection.