The Veteran's petition to reopen his claim for an acquired psychiatric disorder was granted. Service connection for a right knee disorder and left knee disorder, both secondary to service-connected bilateral hammertoe, is denied. Service connection for a low back disorder, also secondary to service-connected bilateral hammertoe, is denied.
The deciding factor: The evidence did not establish a direct link between the Veteran's acquired psychiatric disorder and his military service or any service-connected disability. The right knee and left knee disorders were found to be less likely related to the Veteran’s service-connected bilateral hammertoe due to lack of documentation of an antalgic gait or use of assistive devices.
- Claimed conditions
- {"condition_name":"Acquired psychiatric disorder (claimed as PTSD and anxiety)"}, {"condition_name":"Right knee disorder"}, {"condition_name":"Left knee disorder"}, {"condition_name":"Low back disorder"}
- How they argued it
- Not specified
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- January 21, 2020
- Citation
- 20004778
What this means for you
A grant means the Board agreed the veteran was entitled to the benefit. Decisions like this show the kind of evidence and arguments that tend to succeed for claims like it.
What you can do next
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