The veteran's claim for increased ratings and an earlier effective date for service connection of a right ankle disability was denied. The RO found that the veteran did not meet the criteria for higher initial ratings from December 1, 1999 to September 10, 2001, or from September 11, 2001. The claim for an earlier effective date was also denied as there is no evidence showing service connection prior to December 1, 1999.
The deciding factor: The veteran's right ankle disability has been rated based on moderate limitation of motion since September 11, 2001 and the RO found that this rating adequately reflects his symptoms. The earlier periods were not granted higher ratings due to lack of evidence supporting more severe limitations in motion or other criteria for increased ratings.
- Claimed conditions
- Right ankle disorder
- How they argued it
- Secondary to another service-connected condition
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- 20%
- Decision date
- February 16, 2005
- Citation
- 0504334
Veterans Law Judge
Decisions by this judge: 1,514 · Granted: 19% (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 0504334.
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 the Veteran's right ankle disorder, finding that it was not shown to be related to his active duty service and did not meet the criteria for secondary service connection due to his left ankle disability.
- Granted
The Board has granted service connection for a right ankle disorder and a lung disorder, finding that the conditions are related to active-duty service.
- Denied
The Board denied the Veteran's claim for service connection of a right ankle disorder, finding that there was no evidence linking his current condition to his military service.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board has decided to remand the case due to insufficient medical opinions regarding whether the Veteran's right ankle disorder is related to her military service. A new VA examination is needed.
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