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
Veterans Law Judge
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 0809649.
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 service-connected disabilities, in combination, render him unable to secure or follow a substantially gainful occupation consistent with his education and work history.
- 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.
- Dismissed
The Board has dismissed all appeals regarding the Veteran's claims for service connection for arthritis of the right ankle, left ankle, left knee, and right knee.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board has remanded the case due to a lack of compliance with prior instructions for an ankle examination. The Veteran's claim for increased disability rating for arthritis of the left ankle is now pending.
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