The Board denied the veteran's claim for service connection for bilateral pes planus with degenerative joint disease, finding that the preexisting condition existed prior to service and did not worsen during or as a result of military service.
The deciding factor: The medical evidence does not show an increase in severity of pes planus during service, and there is no clear and unmistakable evidence to rebut the presumption of soundness at entry into service. The veteran's current disability may be related to his preexisting condition rather than active duty.
- Claimed conditions
- bilateral pes planus with degenerative joint disease
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- December 4, 2006
- Citation
- 0637618
Veterans Law Judge
Decisions by this judge: 1,293 · 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 0637618.
What this means for you
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What you can do next
Related decisions
Other Board decisions on a similar condition or argued the same way.
- Granted
The Veteran's bilateral pes planus with degenerative joint disease is rated at 50% from February 1, 2005 to March 24, 2014.
- Denied
The Veteran's service-connected disabilities do not meet the criteria for a total disability rating based on individual unemployability (TDIU) as they do not prevent him from securing or maintaining substantially gainful employment.
- Dismissed
The Veteran's claim for service connection for a bilateral foot disability, including as secondary to diabetes mellitus type II, is now moot due to the grant of service connection for bilateral pes planus with degenerative joint disease.
- Dismissed
The Veteran's appeal has been withdrawn prior to the Board making a decision.
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