The Veteran's right ankle disability was not present until after his discharge from service and is not etiologically related to service. The Board denied service connection for the right ankle disability on the merits.
The deciding factor: The Veteran fractured his right ankle during an assault, which occurred outside of military service, and there is no evidence that this injury is related to his service-connected left ankle disability.
- Claimed conditions
- Right Ankle Fracture, Post-surgical changes and osteoarthritis of the right ankle
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating
- Not verified here — check the original decision
- Decision date
- December 26, 2013
- Citation
- 1342960
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. Read the original VA decision (opens in a new tab) using citation 1342960.
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: Granted
The Veteran is granted a TDIU from October 12, 2016 to November 12, 2018 and from January 1, 2019 to July 22, 2019 due to service-connected disabilities preventing him from securing or following any substantially gainful occupation.
- Whole decision: Remanded (sent back)
The Veteran's appeal for a higher rating for his right ankle disability is being remanded. The Board also found that the criteria for TDIU based solely on the right ankle disability are met, and this claim is also being remanded.
- Whole decision: Granted
The Board has granted service connection for OSA as secondary to the Veteran's service-connected bilateral plantar fasciitis with heel spur syndrome and degenerative changes to right first metatarsal head, degenerative joint disease with torn medial meniscus, right knee, and right ankle fracture.
- Whole decision: Remanded (sent back)
The Board has remanded the claims for increased evaluations of right ankle and left knee disabilities due to insufficient evidence or procedural issues. The Veteran's TDIU claim is also on appeal.
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