Foot (incl. plantar fasciitis, flat feet) decisions — 2024

The Board has decided to remand the Veteran's claims for service connection due to insufficient evidence and need for additional examinations. The issues include back, hip, foot, and face disabilities, as well as respiratory issues.

The Veteran's bilateral shoulder, knee, and foot conditions are found to have started during service and continue to present. Service connection is granted for left shoulder degenerative arthritis, right shoulder degenerative arthritis, left knee degenerative arthritis, right knee degenerative arthritis, and bilateral pes planus.

The Veteran's bilateral pes planus was aggravated by active-duty service, and she is granted service connection for this condition.,Her sarcoidosis is found to have onset during her military service and is related thereto. She is therefore granted service connection for this condition.,There is insufficient evidence to establish a direct link between the Veteran's right hip degenerative arthritis and active-duty service, and she is denied service connection for this condition.

The Board has granted service connection for bilateral hearing loss and denied claims for hammertoe deformities of the feet, flat feet, hallux rigidus/limitus, hallux valgus, right hip disability, left hip disability, right ankle disability, left ankle disability, and cervical spine disability. The Veteran's laceration scar on his forearm was granted an initial 10% rating effective May 11, 2018.

The Veteran's bilateral plantar fasciitis was caused by his service-connected disabilities, specifically the residuals of a fracture of the distal fibula of the right ankle with arthritis. The Board granted service connection for this condition as secondary to his service-connected disabilities.

The Board has determined that new and relevant evidence has been received to warrant readjudication of the claim for service connection for bilateral flat feet. The Veteran's March 2024 hearing testimony provided details regarding his bilateral flat feet, including its onset prior to service. However, further development is needed due to inconsistencies in previous opinions.

The Veteran's appeals for increased ratings for various ankle and knee conditions have been dismissed due to the Veteran's withdrawal of his appeal.

The Board has granted service connection for the Veteran's bilateral pes planus (flat feet) as it is at least in equipoise that this condition had its onset during his military service.

The Veteran's claims for increased ratings, service connection, and secondary service connection are being remanded due to errors in the duty to assist.

The Board has remanded the Veteran's claims for pes planus, right knee disability, and post-operative residuals of tarsal coalition calcaneonavicular, left foot due to inadequate examination reports. The AOJ is instructed to provide a new examination report that addresses functional loss due to repeat use over time and/or flare-ups.

The Board has determined that new and relevant evidence has been received to warrant readjudication of the claim for service connection for bilateral flat feet. The Veteran's March 2024 hearing testimony provided details regarding his bilateral flat feet, including its onset prior to service. However, further development is needed due to inconsistencies in previous opinions.

The Board has identified pre-decisional duty to assist errors in the claims for bilateral foot disability, back disability, neck disability, migraine headaches, and PTSD. The Veteran's claims are being remanded for additional development.

The Board has reviewed the Veteran's claims for service connection for various conditions, but found no new and relevant evidence to support readjudication of any of these claims. As such, the claims are denied.

The Board has remanded the Veteran's claims for service connection due to a lack of VA examination and duty to assist errors. The claims are related to symptoms during Persian Gulf War service, including fatigue, pain, and digestive issues.

The Board has denied service connection for asthma, bilateral pes planus, and headaches. The Veteran's asthma is not considered to have been caused or aggravated by his military service. His bilateral pes planus was noted at enlistment and did not worsen during service. His headaches are not related to his military service.

The Veteran's bilateral flat feet is etiologically related to service, and the Board finds that service connection for this condition is granted.

The Veteran's claims for service connection are being remanded due to incomplete records and a duty-to-assist error.

The Veteran's migraine disability is rated at 50 percent from December 10, 2015. The rating reflects very frequent completely prostrating and prolonged attacks productive of severe economic inadaptability.

The Veteran's claim for a higher rating for bilateral plantar fasciitis was denied, and her claims for service connection of radiculopathies in the upper and lower extremities were also denied. The Board found no evidence to support direct service connection or secondary service connection.

The Veteran's service-connected disabilities prevented him from securing or following a substantially gainful occupation for the period from May 5, 2013 to April 22, 2017. The Board granted TDIU based on this evidence.