The Board has denied the Veteran's claims for service connection for erectile dysfunction, bilateral shoulder disorder, bilateral hip disorder, bilateral wrist/arm disorder, bilateral ankle disorder, and cervical spine disorder due to lack of evidence linking these conditions to his military service.,Additional development is needed for the Veteran's claim regarding bilateral pes planus.
The deciding factor: The VA medical opinions found no direct link between the Veteran’s diagnosed conditions and his military service. The Board accepted these opinions as highly probative, given their thorough review of the claims file and consideration of the Veteran's lay statements.,The VA examination in January 2020 did not find any evidence of osteoarthritis affecting the Veteran's bilateral feet, instead finding pes planus to be the cause of his foot pain. The Board found this opinion more credible than the Veteran’s own assertions.
- Claimed conditions
- erectile dysfunction, bilateral shoulder bursitis, bilateral hip osteoarthritis and degenerative joint disease (left), right hip degenerative joint disease, left hip cerebrovascular accident (CVA) residuals, bilateral wrist/arm CVA residuals, bilateral ankle degenerative joint disease and chronic plantar fasciopathy and calcific achilles tendinopathy, cervical spine osteoarthritis/degenerative joint disease
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- September 11, 2020
- Citation
- 20059961
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 20059961.
What this means for you
A remand is not a loss. The Board sent the case back for more development — often a new exam or missing records — before making a final decision. Many remands later end in a grant, and the decision spells out exactly what the Board wanted to see.
What you can do next
Related decisions
Other Board decisions on a similar condition or argued the same way.
- Dismissed
The Veteran's claim for an earlier effective date for diabetes mellitus type II with erectile dysfunction was denied as the evidence did not show that he had been diagnosed and manifested to at least a 10 percent disability rating on or prior to May 8, 2001.
- Denied
The Board denied service connection for diabetes mellitus, prostate cancer, visual impairment, hypertension, and erectile dysfunction due to lack of exposure to herbicide agents during service. The Veteran's claims were not granted.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board has found that the Veteran meets the basic medical eligibility criteria for PCAFC benefits due to his need for personal care services based on symptoms or residuals of neurological or other impairment or injury. However, further clinical evaluation is needed to determine if participation in the program is in the Veteran's best interest.
- Granted
The Board has granted service connection for prostate cancer, coronary artery disease (CAD), diabetes mellitus type II (DM II), hypertension, and erectile dysfunction as secondary to service-connected DM II. The Veteran's exposure to Agent Orange during active service is presumed.
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