Ankle Board decisions

The Board has denied service connection for a right ankle disability and remanded the claims of entitlement to service connection for right hip strain and left hip strain, both secondary to the Veteran's service-connected left lateral ankle pain with fibroma and stiffness.

The Veteran's service-connected disabilities have rendered him unemployable since April 15, 2011. The Board has granted a TDIU on an extraschedular basis from that date to September 28, 2015.

The appeal to reopen the claim for service connection for residuals of a right ankle injury is granted. The appeal as to entitlement to service connection for melanoma is denied.

The Board has denied service connection for a bilateral shoulder disability, neck disability, bilateral ankle disability, and bilateral knee disability due to the lack of current diagnosed disabilities related to these conditions.

The Board has granted service connection for left shoulder, right hip, right ankle, and bilateral elbow disabilities based on the evidence showing a qualifying event during service.

The Veteran's claim for a disability rating in excess of 30 percent for bilateral hearing loss is denied. The Board has remanded the claims of service connection for prostate cancer, gastroesophageal reflux disease (GERD), rhinitis, and right ankle sprain due to inadequate medical opinions.,The VA examiner failed to provide adequate rationale for their negative opinion regarding the Veteran's prostate cancer claim. The Board finds a pre-decisional duty to assist error as there is no adequate medical opinion of record addressing whether the Veteran's prostate cancer is etiologically related to his military service.

Service connection for PTSD, a left ankle disorder, and GAD have been denied. The Veteran's claim for service connection of sleep disorder is remanded.,The Board found no evidence of current disabilities or in-service stressors related to the claims.

The Veteran's claim for an increased rating for his right ankle disability was received on April 27, 2021. The effective date of the increase to a 10% evaluation is set at April 23, 2021, which is the date he indicated he intended to file his claim.

The Veteran's claims for service connection for bilateral ankle and knee disorders are being remanded due to the receipt of new and relevant evidence. The AOJ will now consider these claims on their merits.

The Board has denied the Veteran's claim for service connection for a right ankle disorder due to lack of evidence of current disability. The issue of service connection for an acquired psychiatric disorder is remanded.

The Board has decided to remand the case due to a duty to assist error, requiring an addendum opinion from a VA clinician regarding the nature and etiology of the Veteran's right ankle condition.

The Veteran's claim for service connection for hypertension was denied. The Board found that the evidence did not support a finding of an in-service injury or disease related to his current condition.,The Veteran's claim for a rating in excess of 10 percent for bilateral hearing loss was also denied. The Board determined that the evidence did not show any improvement beyond what is already provided by the existing 10 percent rating.

The Board has denied the Veteran's claims for service connection for an acquired psychiatric disability, hypertension, and a neck disability. The remaining issues of service connection for right ankle, left ankle, left knee, right knee, rib, left leg varicose veins, and right leg varicose veins are remanded for further development.

The Veteran's claims for service connection for back arthritis, neck arthritis, and a left ankle disorder have been granted.

The Board has denied the Veteran's claim for bilateral hearing loss as there is no evidence of a current disability that meets VA criteria.,The Board has remanded the claims for left and right ankle conditions due to inadequate pre-decisional examinations.

The Veteran's claims for increased ratings and service connection were denied. The initial rating for right lower extremity radiculopathy was denied as it did not meet the criteria for a higher rating.,The Veteran's claims for increased ratings and service connection were denied. The initial rating for left lower extremity radiculopathy was denied as it did not meet the criteria for a higher rating.,Service connection for right ankle disability was denied due to lack of evidence showing an in-service injury or disease related to the condition.,Service connection for right foot disability was denied because there is no evidence of current disability during the appeal period.

The Veteran's service-connected disabilities, including sleep apnea, left knee and ankle injuries, tinnitus, right knee strain, and other conditions, are sufficient to produce unemployability. The Board granted the TDIU based on the combined rating of his service-connected disabilities.

The Veteran's claims for service connection and initial disability evaluations are being remanded due to the need for additional examinations, review of outstanding records, and application of the combat presumption.

The Board has decided to remand the case due to procedural issues and a need for additional medical examination.

The Board has remanded all service connection claims due to the need for additional evidence, including missing STRs and VA examinations.