The Veteran's claims for increased ratings and service connection were denied as the evidence did not support higher ratings or additional service-connected disabilities.
The deciding factor: The medical evidence showed that the Veteran's conditions, while present, did not meet the criteria for higher ratings under applicable diagnostic codes. The Board found no evidence of symptom combinations productive of definite impairment of health or compensable limitation of motion to warrant a higher rating.
- Claimed conditions
- gout of the feet, left elbow and knees with x-ray evidence of degenerative changes of the knees, right foot frostbite with x-ray evidence of DJD of the MTPJ of the great toe, left foot frostbite with x-ray evidence of DJD of the MTPJ of the great toe, right ear frostbite, left ear frostbite, residuals of right (dominant) elbow fracture with x-ray evidence of olecranon osteophyte, hypertension, residuals of nose fracture, elevated cholesterol
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating
- Not verified here — check the original decision
- Decision date
- March 11, 2009
- Citation
- 0908964
Veterans Law Judge
Decisions by this judge: 3,319 · Granted: 25% (granted or partly granted, in the indexed 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. Search VA.gov for the original decision (opens in a new tab) using citation 0908964.
What this means for you
A final Board denial may be appealed to the U.S. Court of Appeals for Veterans Claims, generally within 120 days of the Board mailing date. A Supplemental Claim with new and relevant evidence is a separate option. Another Higher-Level Review of the Board decision is not available. Check your own notice: this historical decision does not set your deadline.
What you can do next
Use your own notice and decision stage. A remanded issue is not a final court-appealable denial. VA review guidance and CAVC filing instructions (U.S. federal; reviewed October 7, 2026).
Related decisions
Other Board decisions on a similar condition or argued the same way.
- Whole decision: Remanded (sent back)
The Board has remanded the claims for service connection for hypertension and peripheral neuropathy of the bilateral upper and lower extremities due to insufficient medical opinions regarding their etiology.
- Whole decision: Remanded (sent back)
The Veteran's claims for increased ratings and service connection are being remanded due to the need for additional development, including VA examinations.
- Whole decision: Remanded (sent back)
The Board has remanded the claims for additional development due to conflicting opinions regarding service connection for peripheral neuropathy, hypertension, and skin disabilities related to herbicide exposure.
- Whole decision: Denied
The Veteran's claim for service connection for hypertension and increased rating for anxiety disorder have been denied. The Board found that there is no evidence of a current disability meeting the criteria for hypertension, and the Veteran's anxiety disorder does not meet the criteria for a higher rating.
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