The Board denied service connection for various forms of arthritis and ankylosing spondylitis, finding that the evidence did not support a link to military service or any other presumptive exposure basis.
The deciding factor: The Veteran's claims were based on direct service connection without any evidence supporting a presumption of service connection due to exposure to Agent Orange, Camp Lejeune, or other specified conditions. The Board found no credible evidence linking the claimed disabilities to his active duty service.
- Claimed conditions
- left ankle arthritis, right ankle arthritis, left hand arthritis, right hand and thumb arthritis, left wrist arthritis, right wrist arthritis
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- 10%
- Decision date
- January 31, 2018
- Citation
- 1806247
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 1806247.
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 Board denied service connection for various conditions, including prostate cancer and related disabilities, urinary incontinence, sleep apnea, hypertension, varicose veins, lumbar spine disability, hip arthritis, shoulder arthritis, ankle arthritis, knee strain, knee replacement, and hand arthritis. The only condition granted was a 10 percent rating for a fracture of the right proximal first metacarpal.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board remands the claims for service connection for left and right hand arthritis to obtain a new VA medical opinion addressing the Veteran's disability under a presumption of soundness.
- Denied
The Board denied the veteran's claims for service connection and increased ratings, finding that the evidence did not support a link between his current conditions and his military service.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board remands all claims for service connection due to the Veteran's failure to attend scheduled VA examinations, necessitating medical opinions.
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