The Board granted a disability rating of 20 percent, but no higher, for left ankle strain and remanded the issue of an effective date prior to August 3, 2009, for the award of service connection for traumatic brain injury (TBI) on the basis of clear and unmistakable error.
The deciding factor: The Veteran's left ankle strain warrants a 20 percent rating due to additional functional loss during flareups and with repeated use over time, but not higher as it does not meet the criteria for ankylosis in plantar flexion locked at more than 30 degrees or dorsiflexion greater than zero degrees.
- Claimed conditions
- left ankle strain
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- 20%
- Decision date
- February 26, 2025
- Citation
- A25017260
Veterans Law Judge
Decisions by this judge: 2,249 · Granted: 37% (granted or partly granted, in the vetted decisions on this site)
Judge attribution: 2025 complete; earlier years partial.
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 A25017260.
What this means for you
A partial grant means some issues were granted while others were denied or remanded — common in multi-issue claims. Look at which issues went which way, and how each was argued.
What you can do next
Related decisions
Other Board decisions on a similar condition or argued the same way.
- Denied
The Veteran's annual clothing allowance for a foot and ankle brace in the 2022 calendar year was denied because the evidence did not show that any such brace tended to wear out or tear his clothing.
- Denied
The Board has denied the Veteran's claim for service connection for left ankle strain, finding that there is clear and unmistakable evidence that the condition preexisted active service and was not aggravated by service. The appeal is dismissed.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board has remanded the claims for service connection for left ankle strain, left knee strain, and bilateral hip strain due to a lack of etiology opinions in the record.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board is remanding the cases due to an incomplete record and a need for additional information regarding applications filed prior to March 9, 2020.
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