New evidence suggests that the Veteran's bilateral knee and hip disorders may be related to his service-connected left ankle disorder, while diabetes mellitus is not shown to have been incurred in or aggravated by service.
The deciding factor: The VA examiner provided a negative nexus opinion regarding the lower extremity disorders but did not provide adequate rationale. The evidence now suggests a possible secondary relationship between the knee and hip disorders and the service-connected left ankle disorder, while diabetes mellitus is not shown to be related to service.
- Claimed conditions
- bilateral knee and hip disorders, type II diabetes mellitus
- How they argued it
- Secondary to another service-connected condition
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- December 4, 2015
- Citation
- 1550904
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 1550904.
What this means for you
A partial grant means some issues were granted while others were denied or remanded — common in multi-issue claims. Look at which issues went which way, and how each was argued.
What you can do next
Related decisions
Other Board decisions on a similar condition or argued the same way.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board has remanded the claims for service connection for a back disorder, high blood pressure, and type II diabetes mellitus due to errors in development of the claim.
- Granted
The Veteran's service-connected PTSD prevented him from securing and following a substantially gainful occupation.,Given the grant of TDIU based on his service-connected PTSD, the Veteran has a single service-connected disability rated as total (PTSD) and additional service-connected disabilities independently ratable at 60 percent or more.
- Dismissed
The Veteran withdrew all appeals regarding his service-connected conditions and related disability ratings, effective as of March 16, 2026.
- Denied
The Board has denied the Veteran's claims for service connection for bilateral plantar fasciitis, sinusitis, hypertension, and type II diabetes mellitus due to a lack of current diagnoses or evidence linking these conditions to his active-duty service.
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