The Board has determined that new and material evidence has been submitted to reopen the claim for service connection for bilateral flat feet, but not for a low back disorder. The veteran's myofascial pain syndrome is related to his active duty service, while sleep apnea, GERD, and memory loss are not.
The deciding factor: The Board found that the evidence presented was significant enough to reopen the claim for bilateral flat feet, as it directly addressed the specific matter under consideration. However, the evidence did not establish a link between the low back disorder and service, sleep apnea with a service-connected disability, GERD, or memory loss.
- Claimed conditions
- bilateral flat feet, low back disorder (claimed as sciatica), myofascial pain syndrome, to include as secondary to service-connected cervical spine disability, sleep apnea, to include as secondary to service-connected cervical spine disability, gastroesophageal acid reflux disease (GERD), memory loss, to include as due to an undiagnosed illness
- How they argued it
- Reopened with new and material evidence
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- January 22, 2009
- Citation
- 0902205
Veterans Law Judge
Decisions by this judge: 1,613 · Granted: 30% (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 0902205.
What this means for you
A partial grant means some issues were granted while others were denied or remanded — common in multi-issue claims. Look at which issues went which way, and how each was argued.
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 require regular aid and attendance, resulting in the grant of special monthly compensation based on the need for regular aid and attendance. The issue of entitlement to special monthly compensation at the housebound rate is moot.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board has determined that the AOJ committed pre-decisional duty to assist errors by not assisting the Veteran to identify and obtain relevant treatment records regarding his bilateral flat feet and for relying on an inadequate addendum opinion. The case is therefore REMANDED for these actions.
- Dismissed
The Veteran's appeal was dismissed due to their death during the pendency of the appeal.
- Denied
The Veteran's claims for increased evaluations of his service-connected bilateral flat feet and lumbosacral strain have been denied. The Board found that the evidence did not support a higher rating for either condition.
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