Ankle decisions — 2020

The Board has remanded the cases of service connection for right ankle disability and left leg neuropathy due to insufficient medical opinions regarding their etiology.,Further examination is needed to determine if the Veteran's current right ankle condition and left leg neuropathy are related to his service-connected disabilities.

The Veteran's service-connected PTSD is granted a 70% disability rating, effective from August 14, 2013. The remaining issues of service connection for various foot and ankle conditions, shin splints, and sleep apnea are remanded.

The Veteran's right shoulder condition is granted service connection, while the bilateral ankle conditions are remanded for further review.

The Board has determined that the Veteran's claims for service connection of various disabilities, including knee and ankle conditions as well as sinusitis and allergic rhinitis, require additional medical examination to determine their etiology.

The Veteran's claim for a higher rating of polyneuropathy of the left lower extremity is granted. The claims for service connection related to low back, ankle, and foot disabilities are remanded due to inadequate medical opinions.

The Board denied the Veteran's claims for service connection of left knee, low back, left ankle, and right ankle disorders due to lack of evidence linking these conditions to his military service.

The Veteran was granted a total disability rating based on individual unemployability due to service-connected disabilities prior to September 19, 2017.

The Board denied service connection for various conditions, including bilateral hearing loss, left thumb disorder, bilateral eye disorder, right ankle disorder, hypertension, and nose disorder. The evidence did not support a finding of current diagnoses or a causal relationship between these conditions and the Veteran's active duty service.

The Veteran's asthma disability is currently rated at 10 percent, and the Board finds that a higher rating is not warranted.,For his bilateral elbow, wrist, knee, and ankle disabilities, additional evidence is needed to determine if they are related to service.

The application to reopen the previously denied claim of entitlement to service connection for left ankle inversion injury is granted. The application to reopen the previously denied claim of entitlement to service connection for left knee strain is denied. Entitlement to service connection for left ankle inversion injury is remanded.

Service connection has been granted for lumbar strain, right knee strain, and right ankle strain.,The Veteran's low back disability, right knee disability, and right ankle disability are all found to be related to service.

The Board has remanded the case due to insufficient development of evidence regarding whether the Veteran's right ankle disability is related to VA medical treatment in 2009 and 2010, specifically if the internal fixation devices used were placed in a way that prevented compression of the fracture site.

The Veteran's claims for left ankle disorder and bilateral CTS have been reopened, but no service connection has been established. The gastrointestinal disorder, headache disorder, and right foot disorder claims are denied. The claim for an initial rating in excess of 10 percent for the right ankle sprain is remanded.

The claims to reopen the previously denied service connection claims for various conditions have been denied due to lack of new and material evidence.

The Board has granted the petitions to reopen claims for service connection for left knee and right knee disabilities, but denied the petitions for service connection of low back, left ankle, and right ankle disabilities.

The Board has granted service connection for hypertension. The issues of service connection for a back condition, bilateral hip condition, and left ankle condition are remanded.

The Veteran's appeal for compensation under 1151 and service connection was dismissed due to withdrawal of the appeals by the Veteran.,A rating of 30 percent for irritable bowel syndrome is granted, effective from the date of receipt of the claim.

The Veteran's claims for service connection have been remanded due to the need for additional medical opinions and records.

The Veteran's claims for increased ratings for migraine headaches and TDIU were denied. The Board found that the Veteran did not meet the criteria for a compensable evaluation for his migraines prior to April 5, 2019, or an evaluation in excess of 30 percent beginning April 5, 2019. For TDIU, the Veteran's service-connected disabilities combined to at least 40 percent disabling but did not render him unable to secure or follow a substantially gainful occupation.

The Board has remanded the claim for service connection of a left ankle disability as secondary to a service-connected right second metatarsal fracture due to insufficient medical opinions addressing whether the Veteran's service-connected condition caused or aggravated her current left ankle disability.