The Board has determined that there is no current disability of the left leg due to a shell fragment wound, and the preponderance of evidence does not support a nexus between service-connected conditions and post-traumatic arthritis, left knee, with instability and degenerative joint disease, left ankle.
The deciding factor: There is no medical evidence showing a current disability related to a shell fragment wound in the left leg, and the Board finds that there is insufficient evidence to establish a connection between any current disabilities of the left knee or ankle and service.
- Claimed conditions
- post-traumatic arthritis, left knee, instability and degenerative joint disease, left ankle
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- May 25, 2004
- Citation
- 0413322
Veterans Law Judge
Decisions by this judge: 1,419 · Granted: 21% (granted or partly granted, in the vetted decisions on this site)
Judge attribution: 2025 complete; earlier years partial.
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 0413322.
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.
- Dismissed
The Veteran's appeals for increased ratings on his left knee arthrofibrosis with instability, mechanical low back pain with ankylosing spondylitis, and post-traumatic arthritis have been withdrawn.
- Granted
The Board has granted a 10% rating for osteochondritis dissecans, left ankle talus and denied an increased rating for post-traumatic arthritis, left knee.
- Denied
The Board denied the veteran's claims for increased ratings for his service-connected lumbar myositis, psychoneurosis and conversion hysteria, residuals of shrapnel wounds of the left thigh and pelvis with retained foreign bodies and scars, and residuals of shell fragment wounds of the right thigh and left leg. The veteran was also denied entitlement to a total disability rating based on individual unemployability due to service-connected disabilities.
- Denied
The Board denied the Veteran's claim for an initial evaluation in excess of 10 percent for his service-connected coronary artery disease, finding that the evidence did not support a higher rating based on the severity of his condition.
Free starter guide for your own claim
Reading this because you were denied or under-rated? Get the plain-English next steps — your appeal options, the deadline that protects you, and how appeals like yours turn out. One email, no spam.
We will only use this to send the guide. No spam, unsubscribe any time. We never sell your information.
We are not the VA. Veterans’ Rights is an independent resource built for veterans. We are not the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs, not part of the government, and not endorsed by any government agency.
This is general information, not legal advice. For advice about your own situation, talk to a VA-accredited representative — many help for free.