Ankle Board decisions

The Veteran's appeal is being remanded due to the need for a VA examination to determine the current severity of his right ankle disability. The claim will be reconsidered after this additional development.

The Board has remanded the case due to insufficient medical opinions regarding the Veteran's claims for service connection. The Veteran is required to undergo a new VA examination and provide additional evidence as needed.

The Board has remanded the case for further development, including obtaining a new VA examination to assess the current severity of the Veteran's right ankle disability. The Veteran will be provided an opportunity to respond and the claim will be readjudicated.

The Veteran's appeals for a right ankle disability, an increased rating for headaches, and a right knee disability have been dismissed. The Board has granted service connection for post-traumatic tremors as secondary to his service-connected head trauma.

The Veteran's left and right ankle disabilities have been rated at 20 percent each for the entire period on appeal, with marked limitation of motion.

The Veteran's appeal is being remanded to determine if he received proper notice of a VA examination and for other indicated development.

The Board denied the Veteran's claims of service connection for lumbar strain and osteoarthritis of the lower back, right ankle disability, and bilateral hearing loss. The examiner found no evidence linking these conditions to service.

The Veteran's claims for increased ratings were denied as his conditions did not meet the criteria for higher disability ratings under VA rating criteria.

The Board has determined that the Veteran's current right ankle disorder, diagnosed as osteoarthritis, began in service and is therefore granted service connection.

The Board has denied the Veteran's claims for extraschedular ratings for total left knee arthroplasty and left knee surgical scar, finding that the symptoms are already accounted for by the assigned schedular ratings.

The Board has determined that the Veteran's right lower extremity disability, including his service-connected right knee disability and other aspects of the limb, does not meet the criteria for a higher rate of special monthly compensation (SMC) based on loss of use.

The Veteran's appeal is being remanded due to the need for additional development, including obtaining educational records and providing a supplemental opinion regarding secondary service connection.

The Veteran's service-connected right ankle disability, characterized as degenerative joint disease (DJD), was previously rated at 20 percent. After a January 2017 VA examination indicated that the Veteran's dorsiflexion range of motion was limited to 10 degrees and he experienced functional loss due to pain and weakness, his rating was increased to 30 percent effective from January 10, 2017.

The Veteran's cause of death is service-connected due to the prescribed medications for his service-connected disabilities causing multiple drug toxicity.

The Veteran's service-connected disabilities, including diabetes mellitus type II and multiple neuropathies, render him unable to secure or follow a substantially gainful occupation.

The Veteran's claims for service connection for various conditions, including PTSD, left shoulder disorder, right shoulder disorder, low back disorder, left knee disorder, right knee disorder, left ankle disorder, right ankle disorder, and arthritis of the first metatarsal joints have been denied. The Board found no evidence linking these conditions to active service.

The Veteran's claim of service connection for a left leg condition has been reopened. The Board will now review the underlying claims for service connection de novo, based on the whole record. Additional medical examination is needed to assess the severity of his service-connected lumbar spine, right thigh, bilateral knee, bilateral ankle, and bilateral heel disabilities; and for an opinion on the issue of service connection for a left leg condition.

The Veteran's claims for service connection for right ankle and left foot disorders are being remanded due to the need for additional development, including obtaining relevant medical records.

The Veteran's claims for increased ratings and service connection are being remanded due to the need for additional development, including new examinations.

The Veteran's service-connected disabilities do not render him unable to secure and follow substantially gainful employment.