The Board denied the Veteran's claim for service connection for a bilateral leg disorder other than already service-connected bilateral knee and ankle disability, diagnosed as gout, finding that there is no evidence of in-service injury or disease related to this condition. The Board also found that the current diagnosis of gout was not caused by any service-connected conditions.
The deciding factor: The VA examiner's opinion found that the Veteran’s gout is less likely than not incurred in or caused by his service or service-connected conditions, and there are no records of bilateral leg conditions in his service treatment records.
- Claimed conditions
- gout
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- November 6, 2019
- Citation
- 19184108
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 granted an initial evaluation of 20 percent for left and right ankle strains, denied a compensable evaluation for bilateral hearing loss, and remanded claims for hypertension and gout.
- Denied
The Board denied the Veteran's claims for compensation under 38 U.S.C. §1151 for various disabilities due to treatment at a VAMC in April 2007, finding no evidence of additional disability caused by carelessness or negligence on VA's part.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board remands the claims for service connection for diabetes, sleep apnea, prostate cancer, urinary incontinence, residuals of gallbladder removal, gout and low back disability, as well as entitlement to a TDIU prior to April 20, 2023, due to inadequate medical opinions.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board remands the claims for service connection for various conditions to correct pre-decisional duty to assist errors, including obtaining outstanding Social Security Administration records.
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