Citation Nr: 18145305 Decision Date: 10/26/18 Archive Date: 10/26/18 DOCKET NO. 14-41 113A DATE: October 26, 2018 REMANDED Entitlement to service connection for left knee disability is remanded. Entitlement to a rating in excess of 20 percent prior to May 1, 2017, and in excess of 10 percent thereafter, including whether the reduction in compensation from 20 to 10 percent was proper, is remanded. REASONS FOR REMAND The Veteran served on active duty from August 1956 to December 1964. 1. Entitlement to service connection for left knee disability is remanded. 2. Entitlement to a rating for bilateral hearing loss in excess of 20 percent prior to May 1, 2017, and in excess of 10 percent thereafter, including whether the reduction in compensation from 20 to 10 percent was proper, is remanded. As to the Veteran’s claim for service connection for left knee disability, a September 2014 VA medical opinion provider opined that the Veteran’s left knee disability was less likely than not related to service. However, the VA medical opinion provider relied on the lack of documentation of an injury in service without adequately addressing the Veteran’s contention that his current left knee disability is related to an injury from when he caught his left leg on a ladder and fell when he was getting off of an airplane during service at Hahn Air Force Base in Germany. Accordingly, remand is appropriate for further VA medical opinion. During the December 2017 Board hearing, the Veteran testified that his hearing has worsened. He reported that he has to keep turning up the volume on the television more and more. See Hearing Tr., p. 21. Accordingly, remand is appropriate to obtain a new VA examination to address the current severity and manifestations of his bilateral hearing loss. While on remand, any additional private and VA treatment records should be obtained, to include any additional treatment records from Dr. Boone and Dr. Mittal and VA treatment records from April 2017 to the present. The Board notes that the Veteran’s claims file contains July 2008 records from Dr. Boone, and that the Veteran reported additional treatment from Dr. Boone, including in 2013. The matters are REMANDED for the following action: 1. After securing any necessary authorization, obtain any private treatment records as the Veteran may identify relevant to his claims, to include any additional treatment records from Dr. Boone and Dr. Mittal. 2. Obtain any outstanding VA treatment records and associate them with the Veteran’s claims file, to include any VA treatment records from April 2017 to the present. 3. After obtaining any outstanding records, ask the appropriate orthopedic examiner to review the Veteran’s file. The necessity of an in-person examination, with any appropriate testing, is left to the discretion of the examiner. The examiner should identify any current left knee disability the Veteran has presented during the claim period (from May 2013 to the present). For each diagnosis, the examiner should opine whether it is at least as likely as not (a 50 percent or greater probability) that the disorder: (a) had an onset in service; or (b) is otherwise related to an in-service injury, event, or disease. For arthritis, the examiner should opine whether it is at least as likely as not (a 50 percent or greater probability) that the disorder manifested to a compensable degree within a year of separation from service (by December 1965). The examiner should consider all medical and lay evidence of record, including the articles submitted by the Veteran in December 2017. The examiner should accept as true the Veteran’s report that he caught his left leg and fell on a ladder as he was getting off of an airplane during his service at the Hahn Air Force Base in Germany. The Veteran reported that he was limping following the fall, that an x-ray taken following the injury was normal, and that his pain went away within a few weeks. The Veteran reported that his VA treater indicated during May 2013 treatment that the Veteran’s left knee condition was likely due to an injury rather than normal wear and tear.   The Veteran reported that he believes his current problems are due to his in-service fall because that was the only injury to his left knee as he did not injure it after service. In February 2017 treatment, the Veteran reported that he had experienced some pain in his left knee for 59 years. A complete rationale should be given for all opinions and conclusions expressed. 4. Schedule the Veteran for an examination by an appropriate clinician to determine the current severity of his service-connected bilateral hearing loss. The examiner should provide a full description of the disability and report all signs and symptoms necessary for evaluating the Veteran’s disability, including under the rating criteria. To the extent possible, the examiner should identify any symptoms and functional impairments due to hearing loss alone and discuss the effect of the Veteran’s hearing loss on any occupational functioning and activities of daily living.   5. Thereafter, readjudicate the claims. If the benefits sought on appeal remain denied, the Veteran and his representative should be furnished a supplemental statement of the case and given the opportunity to respond thereto. MARJORIE A. AUER Veterans Law Judge Board of Veterans’ Appeals ATTORNEY FOR THE BOARD A. Purcell, Associate Counsel