The Board denied service connection for bilateral foot disabilities, folliculitis, and headaches. The Veteran's bilateral foot disabilities were not shown to have been aggravated by service, while his folliculitis was found to be related to service. His headaches were determined to be due to alcohol abuse rather than service.
The deciding factor: The Board found no evidence of aggravation of the Veteran's preexisting bilateral foot disabilities in service and concluded that any current disability is less likely related to service. The folliculitis was considered a chronic condition with an onset during service, but the Board did not find it directly related to service due to lack of medical opinion. Headaches were determined to be more likely caused by alcohol abuse rather than service.
- Claimed conditions
- Bilateral foot disabilities, Folliculitis, Headsaches
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- April 5, 2019
- Citation
- 19125757
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.
- Partly granted
The Board denied increased ratings for the Veteran's lumbar spine, bilateral foot, and right thumb disabilities prior to certain dates but granted a 40% rating for his lumbar spine disability effective October 29, 2020.
- Denied
The Board denied service connection for bilateral hearing loss, functional abdominal pain syndrome (FAPS), and fibromyalgia. The initial disability ratings for posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) and migraine headaches were also denied. Some claims related to other disabilities were remanded.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board remands the claims for service connection for posttraumatic stress disorder, tinnitus, lung problems, jaw problems, and folliculitis due to the Veteran's inability to report for VA examinations.
- Partly granted
The Board granted annual clothing allowances for right and left knee braces and a back brace, but denied allowances for capsaicin cream and Voltaren topical medications.
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