Ankle Board decisions

The Veteran's claim for residuals of a low back injury and right ring finger injury was denied due to lack of competent medical evidence linking the current conditions to service.,The Veteran's recurrent left ankle strain has been granted service connection, with no specific date provided in the decision.

The Board denied the Veteran's claims for service connection for bilateral hearing loss and a right ankle sprain, as well as his claim for PTSD. The decision also noted that the issue of service connection for a psychiatric disorder was recharacterized to include PTSD.

The Board denied the appellant's claims for service connection for various conditions, including arthritis of the right knee and lumbar spine, residuals of a left ankle sprain, arthritis of the right shoulder, body cramps, hepatitis C, peripheral neuropathy of the lower extremities, hypertension, and coronary artery disease. The appeals were dismissed due to lack of evidence or insufficient material.

The Board found that the Veteran's chronic sinus disorder, bilateral hearing loss, and low back disorder were not incurred in or aggravated by active service. The Board also found that the Veteran did not meet the criteria for a compensable evaluation for recurrent left ankle sprain.

The Veteran's claims for service connection for male infertility, bilateral leg and ankle swelling, and asthma have been denied as the evidence does not support a link to his active service or herbicide exposure.

The Board found that the Veteran's current right ankle symptoms are not related to his in-service injury and are instead due to a post-service fracture. As such, a compensable evaluation for service-connected residuals of the right ankle sprain is denied.

The Board found that there is no credible evidence of a continuity of symptomatology between the reported in-service injuries and the current diagnoses of knee and ankle strain, and thus denied service connection for right knee and left ankle disabilities.

The Veteran's service-connected conditions do not render him unemployable due to their combined effect. The Board finds that his obesity and other medical problems, rather than the service-connected disabilities, prevent him from securing or following a substantially gainful occupation.

The Board has determined that the Veteran does not have a current neck or left ankle disability, and thus cannot establish service connection for these conditions.

The Veteran's claim to reopen service connection for a right ankle disorder is granted. However, the Board finds that additional development of evidence is required before addressing the merits of his service connection claim.

The Board has ordered the VA to request medical records from Dr. Rogge and other healthcare providers mentioned by the appellant, as part of a remand process due to incomplete information provided in previous requests.

The Board denied the Veteran's claims for increased schedular ratings for his service-connected left and right ankle disorders, finding that the evidence did not warrant a higher rating based on current symptomatology.

The Board has determined that the appellant's osteoarthritis of the left knee, back (lumbar spine), and left ankle are proximately due to or the result of his service-connected right knee disability. Therefore, these conditions have been granted as secondary to the service-connected condition.

The Veteran's claims for an effective date earlier than June 30, 2004 for a 70 percent rating for PTSD and a TDIU based on service-connected PTSD are denied as there was no pending claim prior to that date.

The Veteran died of malignant melanoma, a condition not service-connected. His death is not considered to be due to any service-connected disability.

The Board has determined that the Veteran's current left knee and left ankle disorders are not proximately due to, the result of, or chronically aggravated by his service-connected chronic lumbar syndrome with degenerative disc disease.

The Veteran's claims for increased evaluations and effective dates were denied, as well as his attempts to reopen service connection claims for elbow, ankle/heel, and wrist disabilities. The RO found that the evidence did not meet the criteria for reopening these claims.

The Board has determined that the Veteran's claimed foot and ankle disabilities were not incurred or aggravated during his active service. The evidence does not support a finding of service connection for these conditions.

The Veteran's claim for an increased disability rating for his service-connected right ankle fracture prior to January 16, 2003 was denied.,The appeal regarding the reduction of his disability rating from 20 percent to noncompensable effective January 16, 2003 was also denied. The Veteran's claim for an increased disability rating for his service-connected right ankle fracture from October 27, 2008 was granted with a 10% disability rating.,The Veteran's appeal regarding the reduction of his disability rating to noncompensable effective January 16, 2003 is not addressed as it resulted in no change in combined compensation payments.

The Veteran's claims for service connection are being remanded due to the need for additional development, including a VA examination and readjudication on both direct and secondary theories of entitlement.