Ankle decisions — 2025

The Board remands the issues of service connection for various disabilities and the character of discharge issue, as additional evidence and clarification are needed.

The Board denied increased ratings for major depressive disorder, bilateral hearing loss, obstructive sleep apnea, and a right ankle disability.

The Board denied service connection for a left ankle disability as there was no current diagnosis of the condition during or recent to the appeal period.

The Board denied increased ratings for lumbosacral strain, right and left hip osteoarthritis, chronic diarrhea with GERD, and service connection for fibromyalgia. However, a 20 percent rating was granted for the right ankle deltoid ligament sprain with degenerative arthritis.

The Board denied the Veteran's claims for service connection for left and right ankle, shoulder, and wrist conditions due to a lack of evidence supporting current disabilities or in-service injuries.

The Board dismissed all appeals for service connection of various conditions, including insomnia, asthma, migraines, sleep apnea, erectile dysfunction, hypertension, bilateral hearing loss disability, pseudofolliculitis barbae, clavicle and shoulder disabilities, arm and leg radiculopathies, hip and knee disabilities, ankle disabilities, shin splints, and plantar fasciitis.

The Board remands the claims for service connection of various conditions due to a pre-decisional error in not obtaining medical opinions and VA treatment records.

The Board denied a higher disability rating for retrocalcaneal bursitis with tenosynovitis, right ankle and dismissed the appeal of the proposed reduction in the disability rating for flatfoot (pes planus) with plantar fasciitis, right foot. The claim for service connection for a left foot disability was remanded.

The Board denied the Veteran's appeal for an earlier effective date for service connection for acne, right ankle lateral collateral ligament sprain, and sleep apnea.

The appeal was dismissed for failure to timely file a Notice of Disagreement within one year after the respective rating decisions were issued.

The Board granted an initial 20 percent disability rating for right ankle arthritis, as the evidence more nearly approximates marked limited motion of the ankle throughout the appeal period.

The Board remands the claim for service connection of a left ankle condition to obtain an adequate medical opinion.

The Board denied service connection for a left ankle condition, finding that the evidence does not support a link between the Veteran's current disability and his active military service.

The Veteran is granted a total disability rating based on individual unemployability due to his service-connected disabilities, which render him unable to secure or follow a substantially gainful occupation.

The Board granted service connection for left ankle disability and right ankle disability, but remanded the claims for upper back disability, cervical radiculopathy of both upper extremities, carpal tunnel syndrome of both upper extremities, left knee disability, and residuals of lymphoma.

The appeal was dismissed due to the Veteran's passing while it was pending.

The Veteran withdrew the appeal for service connection for sleep apnea, right ankle condition, and left ankle condition.

The Board denied the veteran's claims for increased ratings for various service-connected conditions, including knee pain, back pain, and anxiety disorder.

The Board granted service connection for an acquired psychiatric disorder, to include PTSD, cannabis use disorder, alcohol use disorder, generalized anxiety disorder, and other specified depressive disorder, as well as lateral medial epicondylitis of the left elbow, post-traumatic residual pain dysfunction of right knee, pain dysfunction of left knee, and pain dysfunction of the left ankle.

The Board granted service connection for bilateral plantar fasciitis and bilateral heel spurs (secondary to lumbosacral strain), but denied service connection for bilateral tenosynovitis of the foot/ankle and bilateral tibialis tendinitis.