The Board found no evidence of a right foot condition in service or within the presumptive period, and concluded that the current arthritis is not related to service.
The deciding factor: There was no medical evidence showing an injury in service or chronic right foot condition for 36 years following discharge from service.
- Claimed conditions
- Right Foot Arthritis
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- May 3, 2006
- Citation
- 0612901
Veterans Law Judge
Decisions by this judge: 1,738 · Granted: 17% (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 0612901.
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.
- Granted
The Board has granted an initial disability rating of 20 percent for the Veteran's service-connected right and left feet conditions, which include arthritis, hallux valgus (bunions), and calluses. The ratings are effective from December 18, 2008.
- Denied
The Board has denied the Veteran's claim for a total disability rating based on individual unemployability (TDIU) due to his service-connected disabilities, finding that they do not prevent him from obtaining or maintaining substantially gainful employment.
- Granted
The Veteran's claim for service connection of right foot arthritis prior to April 28, 2015 is granted. The effective date is set at October 29, 2009.
- Denied
The Board denied the Veteran's claim for service connection of a right foot disability, finding that his condition was due to a congenital defect and not related to active military service.
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.