Ankle decisions — 2023

The Board has remanded the Veteran's appeal for an increased evaluation for his service-connected right ankle disability and a TDIU due to procedural issues, lack of evidence, and need for further development.

The Board has remanded the Veteran's claims for left and right ankle lateral collateral ligament sprain due to insufficient opinions regarding service connection. The examiner is asked to provide an opinion on whether these conditions are related to military service, including considering any pre-existing conditions.

The Board has remanded the Veteran's claims for additional development, including obtaining medical records and conducting examinations to assess his right knee and right ankle disabilities. The effective date of service connection is also under review.

The Board has granted service connection for a left ankle condition. The Veteran's allergic rhinitis, coronary artery disease, and left retropatellar pain syndrome are being remanded for further development.

The Board has denied service connection for various conditions including headaches, respiratory condition, sinusitis, thigh condition, ankle disabilities, shoulder disability, thumb disability, knee disability, gout, and gastrointestinal disability. The evidence does not support a finding of current diagnoses or a link to service.

The Board dismissed all issues related to the Veteran's claims for service connection due to his death.

The Veteran's appeal for vision loss, left knee condition, left ankle condition, and total disability rating based on individual unemployability has been dismissed. The appeals for right knee condition, right foot condition, left foot condition, and low back condition (secondary to right knee, right foot, and left foot conditions) have been remanded.

The Veteran's claims for service connection for left ankle and back disabilities have been denied as there is no evidence of a nexus between the current disabilities and active military service.

The Board has remanded several claims for further development, including service connection for various musculoskeletal and psychiatric conditions. The issues include PTSD, restless leg syndrome, right shoulder disorder, right ankle disorder, right foot disorders, left hip disorder, and right hip disorder.

The Veteran's left ankle disorder was rated at 10% prior to June 21, 2021 and at 20% thereafter. The Veteran's chronic suppurative otitis media has been rated at the maximum 10% since January 2010.,Increased ratings for both conditions were denied.

The Board has determined that the Veteran's right and left knee disabilities are secondary to his service-connected left ankle degenerative arthritis. However, due to incomplete information in the claims file, a new VA examination is required for both conditions.

The Board has determined that more development is necessary before final adjudication of the claims on appeal, including obtaining service treatment records and scheduling VA examinations to determine if the Veteran's bilateral knee, ankle, and foot disabilities are related to his active service.

The Board has granted service connection for left wrist disorder, right knee disorder, right ankle disorder, and left ankle disorder. The conditions are found to be related to in-service occurrences.

The Board has remanded the claims for service connection for bilateral hearing loss, tinnitus, a left foot condition, a left ankle condition, and a psychiatric disorder due to incomplete development of records.

The Board denied the Veteran's claims for service connection for bilateral ankle disorder, dry eye syndrome, right knee disorder, and tinnitus as there is no persuasive evidence of current diagnoses or a link to service.

The Board has remanded the case for additional development due to inadequate VA examinations and incomplete opinions regarding service connection for various disabilities, including a low back disability, right upper extremity neuropathy, left ankle disability, and right ankle disability.

The Veteran's left knee disability, osteoarthritis with a meniscal tear, is caused by his service-connected lumbosacral strain. The cervical spine and left ankle disabilities are not addressed in this decision.

The Board denied the Veteran's claim for a total disability rating based on individual unemployability due to service-connected disabilities (TDIU) on an extraschedular basis, finding that his service-connected right shoulder and right ankle disabilities did not preclude him from obtaining or maintaining substantially gainful employment.

The Board has granted a rating of 20 percent for the Veteran's left foot/heal pain with difficulty bending the foot, finding it more nearly approximated by moderately severe level of impairment.

The Board has remanded the claims for bilateral elbow, wrist, and ankle disabilities due to insufficient medical evidence on file. The Veteran is a combat veteran who reported in-service injuries that may have caused his current disabilities.