The Veteran's petition to reopen the previously-denied claims for gout of various joints, including right ankle, feet, toes, ankles, knees, hands, and left shoulder, is granted. The appeal includes remanded issues related to these conditions.
The deciding factor: New evidence received since prior final denials supports a finding that the Veteran experienced in-service symptoms of gout affecting multiple joints, which raises a reasonable possibility of substantiating the claims.
- Claimed conditions
- gout of the right ankle, gout of the feet, gout of the toes, gout of the ankles, gout of the knees, gout of the hands, gout of the left shoulder
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- May 28, 2021
- Citation
- 21032791
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 21032791.
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
Related decisions
Other Board decisions on a similar condition or argued the same way.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board has decided that the Veteran's gout of his feet is related to a period of active-duty service and remands for further examination.
- Denied
The Board denied service connection for all the claimed conditions as there was no evidence of a current disability or that any of the disabilities were related to active duty.
- Partly granted
The Board granted service connection for a left knee disorder and assigned a 10 percent rating, while denying service connection for gastroesophageal reflux disease (GERD) and other gout-related conditions.
- Partly granted
The veteran was granted a 30% rating for GERD and a 50% rating for bilateral pes planus and plantar fasciitis with arthritis and gout of the feet. All other claims were denied.
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