The Board finds that the preponderance of the evidence is against the veteran's claim of entitlement to service connection for bilateral pes cavus, claimed as high arches, to include secondary to residuals of surgery on the right fifth toe.
The deciding factor: The April 2004 VA medical opinion noted that the veteran had an amputation of the proximal phalanx of the small toe on the right foot and partial excision of phalanges of the right small toe after a shell injury. The examiner believed the veteran's symptoms were likely referable to his cavus deformity, which could have resulted from developmental anomaly or a Charcot-Marie tooth deformity.
- Claimed conditions
- bilateral pes cavus
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- May 23, 2008
- Citation
- 0817017
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.
- Denied
The Board denied the veteran's claims for a compensable rating for xerosis of the bilateral feet and service connection for left pectoralis muscle strain, left knee strain, right knee strain, bilateral pes cavus, and plantar fasciitis.
- Partly granted
The Board denied service connection for several conditions, granted service connection for a left shoulder strain and an initial rating of 100 percent for right knee instability s/p ACL reconstruction, and remanded claims related to adjustment disorder, hearing loss, and tinnitus.
- Denied
The Board denied the veteran's claims for increased ratings for bilateral pes cavus, left wrist tenosynovitis, neck sprain with cervicalgia and cervical spondylosis, nasal turbinate hypertrophy, and seborrheic dermatitis, tinea pedis, and onychomycosis of the nails.
- Granted
The Board granted an effective date of April 16, 1999, for service connection for foot conditions and lupus.
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