The Board found that the veteran's service-connected bilateral claw foot did not cause or aggravate his disorders of the legs and knees, thus denying secondary service connection for those conditions. The initial compensable evaluation for bilateral claw foot was granted.
The deciding factor: VA medical examinations showed no evidence of limitation of dorsiflexion at the ankles or marked tenderness under metatarsal heads in either leg, which are required for a 10% rating under Diagnostic Code 5278.
- Claimed conditions
- bilateral claw foot, disorder of the legs, disorder of the knees
- How they argued it
- Secondary to another service-connected condition
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- 10%
- Decision date
- May 20, 2005
- Citation
- 0513871
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 0513871.
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Related decisions
Other Board decisions on a similar condition or argued the same way.
- Granted
The Veteran's TDIU and SMC claims for service-connected disabilities are granted, with the effective date being July 28, 2025. The TDIU is based on bilateral claw foot alone, while the SMC is due to additional disabilities rated at 60 percent or more.
- Granted
The Board granted service connection for bilateral claw foot, tinea unguium, and peripheral vascular disease.
- Granted
The Veteran's right ankle condition, left ankle condition, bilateral pes planus, and right knee condition are all granted service connection.,Service connection is also granted for the Veteran's left lower extremity shin splints and right lower extremity shin splints.,However, service connection for a bilateral claw foot disability is denied.
- Dismissed
The claims for service connection for bilateral claw foot, acquired psychiatric disorder (claimed as general anxiety and dysthymic disorder), diabetes mellitus, type II, prostate cancer, right knee replacement, and strokes have all been dismissed.,The Veteran's right knee disability was not related to his military service.
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