The Board denied service connection for various hip, knee, foot, and ankle disorders due to a lack of evidence showing that these conditions were incurred or aggravated during active duty or inactive duty training. The appellant's claims are based on National Guard service, but the available medical records do not support a link between his current disabilities and military service.
The deciding factor: The preponderance of the evidence does not show any in-service injury or disease that could have led to the current conditions.
- Claimed conditions
- residuals of a total left hip replacement, residuals of a total right hip replacement, residuals of a total right knee replacement, lumbar disorder to include stenosis with grade 1 spondylolisthesis, thoracic disorder to include stenosis with spinal cord bruising, left foot disorder, right foot disorder, left ankle disorder to include an Achilles tendon disorder, right ankle disorder to include an Achilles tendon disorder, right leg disorder
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- March 21, 2019
- Citation
- 19120916
Veterans Law Judge
Decisions by this judge: 1,987 · Granted: 15% (granted or partly granted, in the vetted decisions on this site)
Judge attribution: 2025 complete; earlier years partial.
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 19120916.
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.
- Granted
The Veteran's service connection claims for lumbosacral strain, asthma, melasma and hydradenitis, hypertension, an acquired psychiatric disorder (claimed as depression, anxiety, and stress), left shoulder disorder, right shoulder disorder, left knee disorder, a left foot disorder, and IBS have been granted. The remaining issues are remanded.
- Granted
The Board has granted service connection for the cause of the Veteran's death, finding that side effects from prescribed medications contributed substantially and materially to his accidental motorcycle collision resulting in fatal injuries.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board has denied service connection for radiculopathy of the left and right lower extremities prior to November 22, 2022.,The Board has also remanded the issue of service connection for a right foot disorder.
- Granted
The Board has granted the Appellant's request to have his military service characterized as honorable, and has also granted service connection for various conditions including unspecified trauma and stressor related disorder with attention deficit-hyperactivity disorder, right ear hearing loss, tinnitus, scars of the left second finger and thumb, thoracolumbar spine strain, bilateral knee strains, and a right foot disorder.
Free starter guide for your own claim
Reading this because you were denied or under-rated? Get the plain-English next steps — your appeal options, the deadline that protects you, and how appeals like yours turn out. One email, no spam.
We will only use this to send the guide. No spam, unsubscribe any time. We never sell your information.
We are not the VA. Veterans’ Rights is an independent resource built for veterans. We are not the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs, not part of the government, and not endorsed by any government agency.
This is general information, not legal advice. For advice about your own situation, talk to a VA-accredited representative — many help for free.