Ankle Board decisions

The Board has dismissed the appeal due to the Veteran's withdrawal of his appeal.

The Board has determined that the Veteran's current right shoulder, right ankle, left knee, left hip, mid-back, and bilateral thumb conditions are related to his service due to combat injuries. The appeal is granted.

The Veteran's appeal is being remanded for additional development of his claims, including obtaining medical records and updating treatment records. The TDIU claim is also being remanded.

The Veteran's claim for a compensable disability rating for hemorrhoids was denied, and the Board found that there were no external or internal hemorrhoids meeting the criteria for a higher rating. The right ankle disability claim is remanded as it lacks an opinion regarding its etiology.

The Veteran's degenerative changes of the cervical spine have been rated at 10 percent since July 27, 2009.

The Board has determined that the Veteran's current back disability, left shoulder disability, and left ankle disability are related to his service. The claim for increased rating for PTSD is granted.

The Veteran's appeal is remanded due to the need for updated treatment records and a new VA examination to assess his left ankle disability.

The Veteran's appeal involves multiple conditions and issues, including service connection claims for various health problems. The Board has scheduled a Travel Board hearing to address these matters.

The Board has determined that the Veteran's service-connected right ankle disability, which was a result of his military service, contributed to his death from pulmonary thromboembolism. The cause of death is therefore service connected.

The Board has remanded the case for further development, including obtaining VA treatment records and scheduling the Veteran for a VA examination to determine the nature and etiology of his claimed disabilities.

The VA determined that the Veteran does not have a current right ankle disorder and found no evidence of any residuals from his in-service ankle sprain.

The Veteran's appeal is being remanded to the AOJ for further development, including obtaining additional VA and private medical records, arranging for a VA examination of his right ankle, and considering whether staged rating is appropriate.

The Board has decided to remand the case for additional development, including a new VA examination of the Veteran's left ankle degenerative arthritis.

The Veteran's appeal is being remanded for additional development, including VA examinations to determine the nature and severity of his service-connected bilateral knee disabilities, hip and ankle disorders, as well as an adjustment disorder with depressed mood.

The Veteran's appeal is being remanded due to insufficient evidence regarding the service connection of his bilateral hip and ankle disabilities. The case will be returned for further development.

The Veteran's claims for increased evaluations of his right hip, ankle, and foot disabilities were denied. The conditions are rated as follows: Right Hip Strain (Sprain) is currently evaluated at 10% disabling; Right Ankle Degenerative Arthritis is currently evaluated at 20%; and Right Foot Degenerative Arthritis with Hallux Valgus is currently evaluated at noncompensable.

The Board has denied the appellant's claims for service connection for residuals of right and left ankle injuries, tinnitus, right knee disability, left knee disability, and lower back disability. The appeals are pending.

The Veteran's service-connected disabilities, including PTSD, Parkinson's disease, tinnitus, and diabetes, are sufficiently severe to preclude him from securing or following a substantially gainful occupation.

The Board denied the Veteran's claims of service connection for bilateral knee and ankle disorders, finding no evidence of a chronic disability in service or within one year of separation. The Board also found that there was insufficient credible evidence to link any current disabilities to service.

The Veteran's claims for increased evaluations of his right knee, hip, and ankle disabilities have been denied. The claim for an increased evaluation for bilateral hearing loss disability is also denied.