The Board found no evidence of a currently diagnosed bilateral ankle disorder, cervical spine degenerative joint disease, or low back degenerative changes that are related to service. The Veteran's claims for these conditions were denied.
The deciding factor: There is no credible evidence linking the Veteran's current diagnoses with his military service.
- Claimed conditions
- bilateral ankle disorder, degenerative joint disease of the cervical spine, degenerative changes of the low back
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating
- Not verified here — check the original decision
- Decision date
- August 10, 2015
- Citation
- 1534148
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 1534148.
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 Board has granted service connection for a thoracolumbar spine disability, but denied service connection for bilateral hearing loss disorder, gout, multiple painful joints, bilateral ankle disorder, bilateral knee disorder, and obstructive sleep apnea (OSA).
- Whole decision: Denied
The Board denied the Veteran's claims for service connection for various conditions, including left hip disorder, bilateral ankle disorder, bilateral lower extremity radiculopathy, heart disorder, insomnia, sexual arousal disorder, gynecological disorder, rheumatoid arthritis, and HTN. The evidence did not support a current diagnosis of these conditions or their relationship to military service.
- Whole decision: Dismissed
The Veteran's appeal for a rating in excess of 30 percent for chronic diarrhea with GERD is dismissed. The appeals for earlier effective dates for the grant of service connection for bilateral ankle disabilities are also dismissed.
- Whole decision: Denied
The Board found no current disabilities of the bilateral legs or ankles and thus denied service connection for these conditions.
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