The Board has granted the Veteran's petition to reopen his claim for service connection and has determined that he is entitled to service connection for bilateral foot disabilities, including hammertoes. The evidence supports a finding that these conditions are related to his military service.
The deciding factor: The medical opinions provided by VA and private examiners support a nexus between the Veteran's current diagnoses of pes planus, hallux valgus, plantar fasciitis, hammertoes, and heel spurs and his service, with some indicating that these conditions may have been exacerbated during service.
- Claimed conditions
- bilateral foot disabilities, pes planus, hallux valgus, plantar fasciitis, hammertoes, heel spurs
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- March 10, 2022
- Citation
- 22013667
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 22013667.
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.
- Denied
The Board denied service connection for various conditions, including right shoulder disability, abdominal hernia, GERD, bilateral ankle disabilities, and bilateral foot disabilities. The evidence did not support a finding that these conditions were incurred or aggravated during the appellant's period of active duty.
- Granted
The Board has granted service connection for bilateral plantar fasciitis, finding that the Veteran's pre-existing pes planus condition was aggravated by service. The effective date is August 15, 2025.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board has decided to remand the Veteran's claims for service connection for athletes' foot, low back strain, and plantar fasciitis due to a lack of a VA examination prior to the August 2020 rating decision.
- Granted
The Veteran's service-connected disabilities prevented him from securing and following substantial gainful employment, leading to a grant of TDIU.
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