Citation Nr: 18140173 Decision Date: 10/02/18 Archive Date: 10/02/18 DOCKET NO. 16-13 974 DATE: October 2, 2018 ORDER Entitlement to service connection for hemorrhoids is denied. REMANDED Entitlement to an initial compensable rating for left foot tinea pedis is remanded. Entitlement to an initial compensable rating for right foot tinea pedis is remanded. FINDING OF FACT A hemorrhoid disability has not been present during the period of the claim. CONCLUSION OF LAW The criteria for service connection for hemorrhoids have not been met. 38 U.S.C. §§ 1110, 5107 (2014); 38 C.F.R. §§ 3.303 (2017). REASONS AND BASES FOR FINDING AND CONCLUSION The Veteran had active military service from September 1980 to April 1984. This matter comes before the Board of Veterans’ Appeals (Board) on appeal from a March 2014 rating decision issued by the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) Regional Office (RO) located Muskogee, Oklahoma. Jurisdiction has been transferred to the RO in Winston-Salem, North Carolina. 1. Entitlement to service connection for hemorrhoids Service connection may be granted for disability resulting from personal injury suffered or disease contracted in the line of duty or for aggravation of a pre-existing injury or disease in the line of duty. 38 U.S.C. §§ 1110, 1131 (2014); 38 C.F.R. §§ 3.303, 3.304, 3.306 (2017). Service connection may also be granted for any injury or disease diagnosed after discharge, when all the evidence, including that pertinent to service, establishes that the disease or injury was incurred in service. 38 C.F.R. § 3.303(d) (2017). The standard of proof to be applied in decisions on claims for VA benefits is set forth in 38 U.S.C. § 5107(b). Under that provision, VA shall consider all information and lay and medical evidence of record in a case before the Secretary with respect to benefits under laws administered by the Secretary. When there is an approximate balance of positive and negative evidence regarding any issue material to the determination of a matter, the Secretary shall give the benefit of the doubt to the claimant. 38 U.S.C. § 5107(b)(2012); see also Gilbert v. Derwinski, 1 Vet. App. 49 (1990). Factual Background The Veteran asserts that service connection for hemorrhoids is warranted. He contends that the disability had its onset during military service and has persisted since that time. Service treatment records show that in February 1984, the Veteran presented with complaints of hemorrhoids which had persisted for 4 days. Following examination, external hemorrhoids were assessed. At the time of the March 1984 military separation examination, external hemorrhoids were again noted. No post-service medical evidence has been provided demonstrating a current hemorrhoid disability. In connection with his claim that he had a hemorrhoid disability, the Veteran was afforded a VA rectum and anus conditions examination in March 2014. He reported undergoing treatment for hemorrhoids in 1981. He indicated that he had not had a flare-up since that time. Examination showed that no symptoms were present and laboratory testing, including a CBC, was normal. The examiner concluded that there was no pathology present to render a diagnosis of hemorrhoids. Analysis After carefully considering the record on appeal, the Board finds that the preponderance of the evidence is against the claim of service connection for hemorrhoids. In this case, the record does not establish that the Veteran currently has a hemorrhoid disability, nor has he had the claimed disability at any time during the claim period. As noted herein Congress specifically limits entitlement for service-connected disease or injury to cases where such incidents have resulted in a disability. See 38 U.S.C. § 1110; see also Brammer v. Derwinski, 3 Vet. App. 223 (1992); Gilpin v. West, 155 F.3d 1353 (Fed. Cir. 1998). Again, the Board has carefully reviewed the record on appeal and can find no clinical indication that the Veteran has had a hemorrhoid disability at any time during the period on appeal. The Board acknowledges that service treatment records indeed show that the Veteran was treated for hemorrhoids during military service and such disability was noted at the time of the military separation examination, conducted one month later. That an injury or disease occurred in service, however, is not enough to establish service connection. Rather, there must be chronic disability resulting from that injury or disease. In this case, there is no probative evidence of a current disability. Notably, at the time of the March 2014 VA examination, the examiner specifically concluded that hemorrhoids were not present. Moreover, there is no clinical evidence of hemorrhoids which are currently present. Despite being advised to provide evidence that the claimed disability existed in a VA letter dated in October 2013, the Veteran did not identify or provide any post-service treatment records for any current hemorrhoid disability. To the extent that the Veteran’s filing a claim of service connection for hemorrhoids may constitute lay evidence of a current disability, the Board finds that the opinion of the March 2014 examiner that hemorrhoids are not present outweighs any contentions of the Veteran that a hemorrhoid disability is currently present. In summary, the most probative evidence indicates that a hemorrhoid disability has not been present at any time since the filing of the Veteran’s service connection claim. The law limits entitlement for service-related diseases and injuries to cases where the underlying in-service incident has resulted in a current disability. Degmetich v. Brown, 104 F.3d 1328 (Fed. Cir. 1997); Rabideau v. Derwinski, 2 Vet. App. 141 (1992). REASONS FOR REMAND Entitlement to initial compensable ratings for left and right foot tinea pedis is remanded. In the April 2016 substantive appeal, it was noted that the Veteran had recently received VA treatment for his service-connected left and right foot tinea pedis. The most recent VA clinical records regarding treatment for the claimed disability are dated in May 2013. On remand, outstanding VA medical records must be obtained. Lastly, the Board observes that the most recent VA examination for the Veteran’s service-connected left and right foot tinea pedis was in March 2014, more than 4 years ago. The Board finds that a contemporaneous VA medical examination is necessary to ensure that the Veteran’s disability is appropriately evaluated. The matters are REMANDED for the following action: 1. Obtain outstanding VA medical records. Specifically, records from May 2013 to the present must be obtained. 2. Schedule the Veteran for an appropriate VA examination to determine the current level of severity of his service-connected left and right foot tinea pedis. Access to the Veteran’s electronic claims file must be made available to the examiner in conjunction with the examination. (Continued on the next page)   The examiner should elicit from the Veteran a complete history of his skin symptomatology and treatment. Additionally, the examination should include any diagnostic testing or evaluation deemed necessary by the examiner. The examiner should identify, and comment on the nature, frequency and/or severity (as appropriate), of the skin disability in accordance with the applicable Disability Benefits Questionnaires (DBQs). K. Conner Veterans Law Judge Board of Veterans’ Appeals ATTORNEY FOR THE BOARD C. Jones, Counsel