The Board found no evidence of a pre-existing bilateral ankle, knee, or hip disability that was aggravated by service. The Veteran's pes planus is not considered to have been permanently worsened during service.
The deciding factor: There is no clear and unmistakable evidence showing the Veteran's preexisting bilateral ankle, knee, or hip disabilities were aggravated by service.
- Claimed conditions
- bilateral pes planus, bilateral ankle disability, bilateral knee disability, bilateral hip disability
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- April 29, 2009
- Citation
- 0916125
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 0916125.
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 service connection for a bilateral shoulder disability and increased ratings for her bilateral knee disabilities, finding no evidence of in-service injury or disease related to these conditions.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board has remanded the claims for a neurological examination to determine if any diagnosed radiculopathy or other neurological disability affecting the lower extremities was caused or aggravated by service-connected conditions.
- Denied
The Board denied the Appellant's requests for earlier effective dates for his service connection for bilateral pes planus and gynecomastia scar residuals, finding that the earliest possible effective dates are the dates of receipt of the claims.
- Granted
The Board has granted the Veteran's claim for service connection for a bilateral ankle disability as secondary to his service-connected bilateral knee and low back disabilities.
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