The Board has determined that there is no evidence to support a finding of service connection for the Veteran's right ankle disability, as his current condition is not related to an in-service injury. The preponderance of the evidence does not establish a nexus between the Veteran's current arthritis and his military service.
The deciding factor: The VA examiner concluded that the Veteran's osteoarthritis was more likely due to aging and obesity rather than the in-service ankle sprain, and the lay statements from the Veteran regarding causation are outweighed by this medical opinion.
- Claimed conditions
- degenerative joint disease of the right ankle
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- December 27, 2016
- Citation
- 1648118
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 1648118.
What this means for you
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Related decisions
Other Board decisions on a similar condition or argued the same way.
- Granted
The Board granted service connection for multiple disabilities, including various musculoskeletal conditions and mental health disorders.
- Partly granted
The Board denied increased ratings for generalized seizure disorder, chronic sinusitis, deviated nasal septum, and scars, but granted increased ratings of 20 percent for degenerative joint disease in the left and right ankles.
- Denied
The Veteran's claim for an earlier effective date for service connection of degenerative joint disease of the right ankle was denied.,The Veteran's claim for compensation under 38 U.S.C. § 1151 for lower lip numbness, left cranial nerve V (previously claimed as lower lip numbness (nerve damage)) is remanded due to a duty to assist error.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board has remanded several issues related to the Veteran's service-connected disabilities, including his lumbar spondylosis, left and right lower extremity radiculopathies, degenerative joint disease of the ankles, and claims for service connection for knee and hip disabilities. The remaining issues are not addressed in this decision.
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