The Board denied service connection for various conditions and denied initial ratings for several disabilities, while granting a 30% rating for the left foot disability and a 40% rating for the back disability.
The deciding factor: The Veteran did not have currently diagnosed disabilities of sinusitis, upper respiratory infection, eustachian tube dysfunction, stomach pain, or other claimed conditions, which are critical elements of service connection. Additionally, the evidence does not support granting higher ratings for several disabilities as there was no sufficient evidence to indicate that these conditions were more severe than already rated.
- Claimed conditions
- acute sinusitis, upper respiratory infection, disorder of the eustachian tube, stomach pain, bilateral hearing loss, abnormal auditory function, vitamin D deficiency, migraines, acquired psychiatric disorder, to include major depressive disorder, left foot disability, bilateral plantar fasciitis, back disability, left arm (nondominant) shoulder disability, gastroesophageal reflux disease (GERD), left ankle disability, left leg varicose veins, right leg varicose veins, right hip strain with limitation of flexion, right hip strain, acne, female sexual arousal disorder (FSAD), loss of sense of taste associated with COVID 19, loss of smell associated with COVID 19, two left ankle surgical scars, scar to lip status post trauma to mouth and teeth, temporomandibular joint dysfunction disability (TMJ)
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- October 16, 2025
- Citation
- A25089337
Veterans Law Judge
Decisions by this judge: 3,319 · Granted: 25% (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 A25089337.
What this means for you
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What you can do next
Related decisions
Other Board decisions on a similar condition or argued the same way.
- Granted
The Veteran's claim for service connection for migraines was reopened due to new evidence. Service connection is granted for painful scars, but the rating assigned remains at 10 percent. The claims for fibromyalgia and bilateral shoulder disability are denied.
- Granted
The Board has determined that the Veteran's headaches are at least as likely as not caused by his service-connected traumatic brain injury, and thus grants service connection for this condition.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board has expanded the scope of the claim to include any mental health disorder raised by the record and has remanded for additional development regarding service connection for left leg, ankle, and psychiatric disabilities.
- Granted
The Board has reopened the Veteran's claims of service connection for a back disability, endometriosis, thyroid condition, and chronic fatigue syndrome due to new evidence submitted since the last final denial. The claims are now considered on their merits.
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