Ankle decisions — 2026

The Veteran's appeals for increased ratings and earlier effective dates for his service-connected bilateral ankle disabilities have been dismissed because he did not file a Notice of Disagreement regarding the October 2025 rating decision.

The Board has granted service connection for a right ankle disability as secondary to the Veteran's service-connected residuals from her left ankle plantaris tendon graft, finding that the Veteran's current right ankle disability is related to or aggravated by her service-connected left ankle condition.

The Board has remanded the case due to inadequate medical opinions and failure of the Veteran to appear for a VA examination. The examiner is requested to provide an updated opinion on whether any diagnosed right foot or ankle disability had its onset in service.

The Board has ordered a remand due to the need for clarifying medical opinions regarding the etiology of arthritis and neuropathy, as well as addressing Dr. C.'s opinion on risk factors.

The Board has denied service connection for bilateral hearing loss due to the lack of a current disability. The appeal is remanded for further examination and medical opinions regarding spine disorder, infectious mononucleosis, left shoulder instability, right shoulder instability, and right lower extremity pain.

The Board has remanded the claims of service connection for right and left ankle lateral collateral ligament sprain and lumbosacral strain due to inadequate medical opinions regarding their etiology.

The Board has granted the Veteran's claims for service connection for left knee condition, right elbow condition, and right knee condition. The decision on left ankle condition is pending.

The Board denied the Veteran's claim for an initial rating in excess of 10 percent for his right ankle disability, finding that the evidence did not show limitation of dorsiflexion or plantar flexion less than 5 degrees as required for a higher rating.

The Veteran's knee and ankle disabilities are being remanded for further examination to determine if they are secondary to his service-connected right toe disability.

The Board has denied service connection for bilateral hearing loss due to the Veteran not meeting the auditory threshold criteria. The claims of service connection for elbow, knee, shoulder, and left ankle disabilities are remanded as there may be outstanding service treatment records and VA treatment records that need to be obtained.

The Board has remanded several issues, including service connection for bilateral hearing loss and increased ratings for left and right knee disabilities. The Veteran's current bilateral hearing impairment is not considered a disability for VA purposes due to the invalidity of audiometric test results in his left ear. Service connection for diabetes mellitus, type 2 (diabetes) and other conditions are also remanded.

The Veteran's acquired psychiatric disorder, including unspecified schizophrenia and other psychotic disorder, moderate cocaine use disorder, severe marijuana use disorder, is granted as service connected. PTSD was denied due to lack of a valid diagnosis.

The Board has dismissed the appeals for service connection of right ankle and right wrist injuries due to a withdrawal request from the Veteran's representative.

The Veteran's TDIU was granted effective June 8, 2023, due to his service-connected Generalized Anxiety Disorder.,The Veteran is also entitled to SMC based on housebound from June 8, 2023, as he has a single service-connected disability rated at 100% and additional disabilities independently ratable above 60%.

The Board has granted service connection for left ankle osteoarthritis and right ankle osteoarthritis, finding that the Veteran's statements of continuing symptoms are sufficient to establish a link to her military service.

The Board has determined that the Veteran does not have a current diagnosis of upper extremity neuropathy, and therefore service connection for this condition is denied. The claims for bilateral foot conditions, low back condition, left shoulder condition, right shoulder condition, left hip condition, right hip condition, left knee condition, right knee condition, left ankle condition, and right ankle condition are remanded due to the failure to provide a VA examination prior to the December 2024 rating decision.

The Board has remanded several claims due to duty-to-assist errors and the need for additional medical opinions regarding the severity of the Veteran's disabilities, including their relationship to service.

The Veteran's appeal is remanded for further development, including consideration of new evidence and clarification of the effective date for service connection.

The Board has decided to remand the case due to errors in the pre-decisional duty to assist and requests for a new VA examination.

The Veteran's right ankle and right knee disabilities are granted as they are found to be due to his military service.