Ankle decisions — 2020

The Board has remanded the cases of cervical spine, sinusitis, left ankle disability, and left foot disability due to insufficient evidence regarding their etiology.

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

The Board has remanded the claims for service connection for a right shoulder disability, lower back disability, left ankle disability, and hypertension due to insufficient evidence. The Veteran's lay statements and buddy statements from his wife and fellow Veterans have been considered.

The Veteran's claims for diabetes, diabetic peripheral neuropathy of the upper and lower extremities, prostate disorder, and ED were denied as they are not related to service.,The Veteran's claims for cervical spine disorder, lumbar spine disorder, right shoulder disorder, left shoulder disorder, right hip disorder, left hip disorder, right ankle disorder, left ankle disorder, right foot disorder, and left foot disorder were also denied as they are not related to service.

The Veteran's right hand fracture with arthritis, left ankle disability, bilateral hearing loss, and shin splits are all being remanded for further evaluation.

The Board has denied the Veteran's claim for service connection for a right ankle disability, finding that there is no evidence of an in-service injury or disease and no manifestation of symptoms during active duty. The Board also found that the current right ankle osteoarthritis did not pre-exist service.

The Veteran's claim for an increased rating for service-connected asthma resulted in the grant of secondary service connection for right ankle osteoarthritis and scars of the right ankle, effective from September 14, 2006. The Veteran is seeking earlier effective dates for these determinations.,VA received a claim for TDIU on October 16, 2012, which was granted effective from that date due to the combined rating of his service-connected disabilities.

The Veteran's petition to reopen claims for hypertension, tinnitus, pseudofolliculitis barbae, and service connection for various disabilities have been withdrawn.,Issues related to the Veteran's low back disability and acquired psychiatric disability are being remanded.

The Board denied the Veteran's claim for a TDIU rating prior to July 6, 2015, finding that his inability to secure and follow substantially gainful employment was not due to his service-connected disabilities.

The Veteran's claims for service connection of various knee and back disorders have been dismissed due to the death of the Veteran.

The Board has determined that the Veteran's service-connected disabilities do not preclude him from securing and following a substantially gainful occupation, thus denying his claim for TDIU.

The Veteran's temporary total disability rating for postoperative residuals of right ankle surgery from February 1, 2016, through March 31, 2016, is granted.

The Veteran's bilateral hearing loss is granted as of June 25, 2019. The Board has remanded the issues regarding left knee and ankle disabilities due to incomplete service personnel records and a need for additional medical examination.

The Board denied the Veteran's claim for service connection of residuals of a broken right ankle as there was no evidence that he fractured his ankle during service and no current disability related to service.

The Veteran's squamous cell carcinoma, lymph node in the neck, and hyperuricemia and arthritis conditions of the spine, shoulders, wrists, hands, arms, ankles, legs, and feet are granted service connection. The arthritis conditions were recharacterized to include all arthritic conditions reasonably raised by the record.

The Veteran's TDIU claim was denied as his service-connected disabilities did not preclude him from securing and following substantially gainful employment.

The Board has reopened the Veteran's claims for service connection for a right ankle disability and bilateral knee disabilities, but has remanded his claim for service connection for a back disability due to insufficient medical opinions regarding its etiology.

The Veteran's appeal for an increased rating for his right ankle disability was denied. The Board found that the maximum schedular rating of 20 percent is already in place, and no higher rating based on ankylosis or other diagnostic codes is available.

The Veteran's appeals for higher ratings for his ankle and knee rheumatoid arthritis, as well as wrist conditions, were denied. The Board found that the evidence did not support a higher rating than 10 percent for any of these conditions.

The Board has remanded the Veteran's claims due to new evidence received after his previous denial, and for additional examinations.