The Board finds that the veteran's current bilateral ankle arthritis and bilateral ankle synovitis were not incurred during active service, as there is no evidence of such conditions in service records. The pre-existing condition was not aggravated by service.
The deciding factor: The medical evidence clearly shows that the veteran had a history of fractures to both ankles prior to entry into service, which existed prior to and did not worsen during service.
- Claimed conditions
- bilateral ankle arthritis, bilateral ankle synovitis
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- April 21, 2006
- Citation
- 0611609
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 0611609.
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.
- Partly granted
The Board granted service connection for a right shoulder disability and remanded the claims for bilateral ankle arthritis, sleep apnea, bilateral carpal tunnel syndrome, erectile dysfunction, degenerative disc disease, cervical, bilateral plantar fasciitis with arthritis and heel spurs, and gastroesophageal reflux disease.
- Granted
The Veteran's hypertension, bilateral lower extremity radiculopathy associated with DDD of the lumbar spine, and bilateral shoulder osteoarthritis are granted as service-connected. However, his bilateral knee arthritis and bilateral ankle arthritis do not meet the criteria for service connection.
- Granted
The Board has determined that the Veteran's bilateral ankle arthritis is related to his active duty service and granted his claim for this condition.
- Denied
The Board denied service connection for bilateral ankle, elbow, feet and toe, hip, and shoulder arthritis as the evidence did not establish a relationship to service or a service-connected disability.
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