The Board dismissed the claims for service connection for a thoracolumbar disability, right and left hip disabilities, right and left ankle disabilities, bilateral hand disability characterized by freezing joints and weakness, skin disability to include warts, Lyme disease, short-term memory loss and lack of concentration, bilateral hearing loss, bilateral tinea pedis, eczema, respiratory disability, to include bronchitis, erectile dysfunction, cervical spine disability, chronic leg disabilities, right foot disability, left foot disability, left shoulder disability, right shoulder disability, gastrointestinal (GI) disability, and hypertension. The Board also remanded claims for service connection for a cervical spine disability, chronic leg disabilities, right foot disability, left foot disability, left shoulder disability, right shoulder disability, and hypertension.
The deciding factor: The Veteran did not have the claimed conditions at any point approximate to the filing of his claim or during the period on appeal, as evidenced by VA treatment records and a January 2020 VA examination.
- Claimed conditions
- thoracolumbar disability, right hip disability, left hip disability, left ankle disability, right ankle disability, bilateral hand disability characterized by freezing joints and weakness, skin disability to include bilateral hand/digits characterized by warts, Lyme disease, disability characterized by short-term memory loss and lack of concentration, bilateral hearing loss, bilateral tinea pedis, eczema, respiratory disability, to include bronchitis, erectile dysfunction, cervical spine disability, to include cervicalgia, chronic left leg disability, to include pain, chronic right leg disability, to include pain, right foot disability, to include plantar fasciitis and pain, left foot disability, to include plantar fasciitis, left shoulder disability, right shoulder disability, gastrointestinal (GI) disability, to include irritable bowel syndrome (IBS), hypertension
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- October 15, 2024
- Citation
- A24065512
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.
- Granted
The Board granted an effective date of October 21, 2021, for the grant of service connection for hypertension.
- Dismissed
The appeal for a compensable rating for left ear hearing loss, service connection for right ear hearing loss, and bilateral vision condition was dismissed. Service connection for hypertension, congestive heart failure, and coronary artery disease was denied.
- Denied
The Board denied service connection for various conditions, including prostate cancer and related disabilities, urinary incontinence, sleep apnea, hypertension, varicose veins, lumbar spine disability, hip arthritis, shoulder arthritis, ankle arthritis, knee strain, knee replacement, and hand arthritis. The only condition granted was a 10 percent rating for a fracture of the right proximal first metacarpal.
- Dismissed
The Veteran withdrew the appeals for service connection for bilateral pes planus, obstructive sleep apnea, bilateral hearing loss, tinnitus, and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD).
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