Ankle Board decisions

The Veteran withdrew his appeals before the Board, thus all claims are dismissed.

The Board has remanded the Veteran's claims of service connection for bilateral ankle and foot disabilities due to lack of medical evidence linking her current conditions to military service.

The Veteran's right ankle chronic lateral collateral ligament sprain is currently rated at 10 percent from February 4, 2015. The Board has granted a 10 percent rating for the entire period on appeal.

The Board has granted service connection for the Veteran's right knee and ankle disabilities, finding that they are secondary to his service-connected hand disabilities.

The Veteran's service-connected disabilities rendered him unable to secure or maintain substantially gainful employment prior to February 10, 2015. Effective May 29, 2013, the Veteran was granted SMC based on his left knee disability.

The Veteran's lumbar spine disability is granted as service connected.,Service connection for left shoulder internal derangement and left ankle degenerative arthritis are remanded due to the need for additional development of evidence.,Service connection for right hip disability and left hip disability are remanded due to the need for additional development of evidence.

The Veteran's right ankle sprain, tinnitus, and bilateral hearing loss are all granted. However, the Board has determined that additional evidence is needed for service connection on issues related to gastroesophageal reflux disease (GERD), headaches, left knee disorder, left thumb scar, and joint pain.

The Veteran's bilateral hearing loss is granted as it was caused by in-service noise exposure.,Service connection for tinnitus is granted as the Veteran has a current condition that manifested during service and continues to this day.,Left Achilles' tendonitis is granted as the Veteran had an injury in service, which resulted in continuous symptoms since then.

The Veteran's back disability, diagnosed as lumbar degenerative disc disease and degenerative arthritis, is now granted.,The Veteran's right foot disability (pes planus), left foot disability (pes planus), right ankle disability (chronic right ankle sprain), and right hand disability (carpal tunnel syndrome) are all now granted. The Veteran's COPD claim remains pending as it was remanded.

The Board has denied service connection for a right ankle disability and a left knee disability, including as secondary to the right ankle disability. The evidence does not support a finding that these disabilities are related to service.

The Veteran's claims for higher ratings for his service-connected back, knee, and ankle disabilities are being remanded due to the need for additional examinations addressing the nature and severity of these conditions.

The Board has decided to remand the case due to missing service treatment records from the Veteran's time serving on the U.S.S. Proteus in 1980.

The Veteran's service-connected disabilities rendered him unable to secure or follow a substantially gainful occupation from October 1, 2015 until November 18, 2019. The Board granted a TDIU on an extraschedular basis.

The Veteran's motion to revise a November 2021 decision of the Board on the basis of clear and unmistakable error (CUE) was dismissed without prejudice to refiling due to insufficient specificity in his allegations.

The Veteran seeks earlier effective dates for the grants of service connection for his left ankle and psychiatric disorders. The Board finds that there is no persuasive evidence to support these claims.,The Veteran's current effective date for the grants of service connection for his left ankle and psychiatric disorders stems from an intent to file he submitted to VA in September 2018.

The Veteran's bilateral sensory polyneuropathy is granted as service-connected, and the Board finds that it is at least as likely as not caused by his service-connected back disability. The issues of entitlement to service connection for bilateral ankle, foot, and tarsal tunnel syndrome are remanded.

The Veteran's right knee strain is currently rated at 10 percent, and a separate 20 percent rating for instability has been granted. The lumbosacral strain associated with the left ankle sprain remains at 20 percent, while the chronic left ankle sprain receives a 20 percent evaluation.

The Board has remanded the claims for an acquired psychiatric disability, a back disability, a right hip disability, and a right knee disability due to outstanding VA medical records. The right ankle disability claim is also being remanded.

The Veteran's right ankle disability is granted. The Veteran's right sciatic nerve disability for the period prior to September 6, 2016 is denied. The Veteran's right sciatic nerve disability for the period beginning September 6, 2016 is granted with a 40% evaluation. The Veteran's initial evaluations in excess of 20 percent for his right anterior crural (femoral) and left anterior crural (femoral) nerves are denied. The Veteran's initial evaluations in excess of 10 percent for his left sciatic nerve disability prior to December 19, 2019 is granted with a 20% evaluation. The Veteran's initial evaluations in excess of 20 percent for his left anterior crural (femoral) nerves beginning December 19, 2019 are denied.

The Veteran's left ankle disability is being remanded due to the need for additional medical records and an updated opinion regarding its etiology. The respiratory disability case is also being remanded for further addendum opinions.,The Board has determined that more development is needed in both cases, including obtaining additional medical records and providing new opinions on the etiology of the Veteran's left ankle disorder and respiratory condition.