The Board denied service connection for various disabilities, including allergic rhinitis, sinusitis, respiratory conditions, foot and ankle issues, knee and shoulder problems, low back pain, carpal tunnel syndrome, IBS, and sleep disorders.
The deciding factor: There was no evidence of current disability or a relationship between the claimed conditions and service, particularly in light of the Veteran's lack of qualifying service in Southwest Asia or other areas during the Persian Gulf War.
- Claimed conditions
- allergic rhinitis, sinusitis, respiratory disability (including asthma and chronic cough syndrome), bilateral foot disability (arthritis, pes planus, plantar fasciitis, heel spurs), bilateral ankle disability, bilateral knee disability, bilateral shoulder disability, low back disability, bilateral carpel tunnel syndrome, irritable bowel syndrome (IBS), sleep disability (including sleep apnea and sleep disturbance)
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- June 17, 2025
- Citation
- A25052962
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.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board remands the claim for a medical opinion on whether plantar fasciitis was aggravated by active duty training.
- Denied
The Board denied increased ratings for the Veteran's lumbar spine pain, allergic rhinitis, and recurrent yeast infections. The claims for service connection for generalized anxiety disorder with alcohol use disorder and left knee pain were remanded.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board remands the service connection claim for a bilateral knee disability to correct a pre-decisional duty to assist error, including scheduling an additional VA examination.
- Partly granted
The Board granted service connection for asthma and remanded claims for insomnia and sleep apnea. Other conditions were denied.
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