The Board found that the Veteran's current right and left ankle disabilities are not related to his service-connected conditions, specifically his residuals of a left foot laceration. The VA examiner opined that these disabilities were more likely caused by post-service injuries rather than service-connected conditions.
The deciding factor: The VA examiner concluded that the current degenerative changes in the Veteran's ankles were more likely due to intervening incidents and not related to his prior service-connected conditions.
- Claimed conditions
- Right ankle disability, Left ankle disability
- How they argued it
- Secondary to another service-connected condition
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- 30%
- Decision date
- June 11, 2013
- Citation
- 1319004
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 1319004.
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 Veteran's claim for an earlier effective date of January 10, 1997, for a 10% disability rating for his right ankle disability is denied as there was no CUE in the previous decisions.
- Granted
The Board has granted the appellant's claim for service connection for left ankle disability residuals, finding that his current condition is due to an in-service injury and granting the benefit of the doubt.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board has remanded the case due to insufficient evidence regarding whether the Veteran's right ankle disability is related to his service. The VA examiner must provide an opinion on this matter.
- Dismissed
The Veteran's claims for service connection have been dismissed due to their death.
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