Ankle Board decisions

The Board denied the appellant's claims for service connection and increased ratings for various knee, ankle, and foot disabilities due to a lack of competent medical evidence linking these conditions to military service.

The Board has determined that the veteran's left ankle disorder, characterized by severe pain and weakness with marked limitation of motion, warrants a 30 percent evaluation under Diagnostic Code 5271.

The Board found that the evidence received since the February 1981 rating decision is not new and material, thus denying the veteran's request to reopen his claim of entitlement to service connection for a left ankle disability.

The Board has denied the veteran's claims for service connection for various conditions, including PTSD, alcohol abuse, a personality disorder, degenerative joint disease of the back, skin cancer of the arms and shoulders, partial removal of the liver and intestines, urinary bladder disorder, gall bladder disorder, prostate disorder, gunshot wound of the left hand and left ankle, and residuals of fractures of the ribs. The Board found that there was no confirmed diagnosis of a personality disorder in the record.

The Board has granted service connection for tension headaches and assigned a 10 percent rating effective from August 3, 2000. The other claims of service connection remain pending.

The Board has determined that the veteran does not have a current bilateral ankle disorder and therefore, service connection for this condition cannot be granted.

The veteran's claim for an increased evaluation for his left ankle fracture with traumatic arthritis is denied as the current rating of 20 percent is the maximum allowed under the applicable diagnostic code.

The veteran's appeal is being remanded due to a significant change in the law regarding VA's duty to assist. The case will be held in abeyance until it can be determined whether there are records that could establish an earlier effective date for the award of the 10 percent rating.

The veteran's pes planus was found to have increased in severity during her period of service, warranting a grant of service connection based on aggravation. The issue of entitlement to service connection for a bilateral ankle disorder is remanded due to incomplete records.

The Board found no evidence to support service connection for the veteran's shoulder, hip, ankle, and back disabilities. The right knee disability is currently rated at 30 percent.

The veteran's appeal is being remanded due to incomplete service medical records and the need for additional examinations. The hearing loss claim will be reconsidered, and separate ratings may be assigned for any service-connected disorders of the feet/feet and/or knees as opposed to joining it with ankle disability.

The veteran withdrew his appeals for all issues listed in the decision, effectively dismissing them.

The Board has granted the veteran's service connection for osteoarthritis of the left knee, patellofemoral pain syndrome of the right knee, and fracture residuals of the right ankle. The initial ratings assigned are 10% for each condition.

The Board denied increased evaluations for scars on the right lower leg, dorsum of the right foot, and left ankle. The veteran's service-connected disabilities do not clearly interfere with normal employability.

The Board of Veterans' Appeals denied the veteran's claims for service connection for hearing loss, vision loss, a right knee disability, a right ankle disability, and skin rash.

The Board denied the veteran's claims for service connection for right shoulder and right ankle disabilities due to a lack of evidence linking these conditions to his active military service.

The Board has vacated the previous decision denying service connection for right shoulder and right ankle disabilities due to a lack of consideration of new evidence submitted by the veteran after certification of his appeal to the Board.

The veteran's severe muscle damage, Group XII, of the right lower leg with traumatic degenerative joint disease of the right ankle is rated at 40 percent, addressing loss of function due to pain. The veteran's traumatic arthritis of the right knee remains at a 20 percent rating.

The Board denied the veteran's claims for service connection for various conditions, including a contusion of the sacrum with coccygeal fracture and a psychiatric disorder. The claim for left knee disorder was reopened based on new evidence submitted by the veteran. Service connection for low back strain and neck strain were also granted, but with non-compensable ratings. Effective dates for these decisions are not established.

The veteran's claim for service connection for a left ankle disorder and psychiatric disorder was denied, and the appeal for pension benefits was also denied due to lack of qualifying active service.