The Board found that the preponderance of the evidence was against the veteran's claim for service connection for arthritis of the left ankle, as there was no association between residuals of a mild ankle sprain and his current condition.
The deciding factor: There is no medical evidence linking the veteran's current left ankle arthritis to an in-service injury. The VA examiner concluded that the veteran's present ankle joint complaints were not associated with the minor in-service incident, and private physicians' opinions based on history alone are not sufficient to establish a connection.
- Claimed conditions
- arthritis of the left ankle
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- March 21, 2008
- Citation
- 0809649
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 granted service connection for a neck disorder, diagnosed as arthritis of the cervical spine, and a left leg disorder, diagnosed as arthritis of the left ankle.
- Denied
The Board denied the Veteran's claims for service connection for various joint disabilities, finding that there was no evidence of a nexus between his current arthritis and his military service.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board has reopened the service connection claim for arthritis of the left ankle due to new medical evidence. However, the issue is remanded as an addendum opinion is needed regarding the nature and etiology of the Veteran's current left ankle disability.
- Denied
The Board denied service connection for all conditions except an initial rating of 20 percent for arthritis of the left ankle.
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