The Board has determined that the veteran's low back disability and left ankle disability do not meet the criteria for service connection or an increased rating, respectively.
The deciding factor: There is no evidence of a current low back disability related to service or due to his service-connected left ankle disability. The left ankle disability does not warrant a higher than 10% rating based on the limited range of motion and lack of other disabling factors.
- Claimed conditions
- Low back disability (degenerative joint disease and degenerative disc disease of the lumbosacral spine), Left ankle disability
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- March 12, 2003
- Citation
- 0304487
This is a plain-language summary generated by AI from a public Board of Veterans’ Appeals decision. It can contain errors — always verify against the original. Look up the original decision on VA.gov (opens in a new tab) using citation 0304487.
What this means for you
A denial is a starting point, not the end of the road. You can see why this claim fell short — and, if you are still inside the one-year window, the appeal lanes that may remain open to you.
What you can do next
Related decisions
Other Board decisions on a similar condition or argued the same way.
- Denied
The Board denied service connection for various conditions, including diabetes mellitus, type II, coronary artery disease, congestive heart failure, hypertension, asthma/lung disease, vision disability, bilateral plantar fasciitis, leukocytosis, kidney disease/kidney stones, enlarged prostate, sleep apnea, rheumatoid arthritis, lumbar spine disability, right ankle disability, and left ankle disability.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board remands the claims for service connection due to a pre-decisional duty to assist error regarding VA's obligation to obtain relevant records from the Social Security Administration.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board remands the claims for service connection for various disabilities, including plantar fasciitis of both feet, a low back disability, a left ankle disability, meniscus tears in both knees, and hip disabilities, as additional development is necessary to obtain adequate medical opinions.
- Partly granted
The Board denied an initial disability rating in excess of 30 percent for the Veteran's bilateral pes planus and left foot plantar fasciitis, finding that the evidence did not support a higher rating. The claims for service connection for left and right ankle disabilities were remanded for further development.
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