Citation Nr: 18151982
Decision Date: 11/20/18	Archive Date: 11/20/18

DOCKET NO. 14-01 078
DATE:	November 20, 2018
REMANDED
Entitlement to a disability rating in excess of 10 percent for left knee patellofemoral joint degenerative joint disease (claimed as arthritis of the bilateral legs) is remanded.
Entitlement to a disability rating in excess of 10 percent for right knee patellofemoral joint degenerative joint disease (claimed as arthritis of the bilateral legs) is remanded.
Entitlement to a total disability rating based on individual unemployability (TDIU) is remanded.
REASONS FOR REMAND
The Veteran served on active duty from February 1975 to September 1976.
The Veteran was most recently afforded a VA examination in February 2017 and a private examination in September 2018 to address the severity of his bilateral knee disability. The Board finds that both examinations are inadequate in light of the U.S. Court of Appeals for Veterans Claims (Court) decision in Correia v. McDonald, 28 Vet. App. 158 (2016). In Correia, the Court found that 38 C.F.R. § 4.59 requires specific testing, described in the remand instructions below, to be conducted whenever possible in cases of joint disabilities. The Board finds the results of the VA examination to be inadequate per Correia. A remand is necessary to afford the Veteran an adequate examination. See Bowling v. Principi, 15 Vet. App. 1, 12 (2001). 
In addition, assertions made during the Veteran’s May 2017 hearing raise a claim for a total disability rating based on individual unemployability (TDIU). A claim for TDIU is part of an increased rating claim when such is raised explicitly by the Veteran or implicitly by the record. See Rice v. Shinseki, 22 Vet. App. 447 (2009). As such, the issue of entitlement to TDIU has been added above. The Board notes that the Veteran has not yet been provided with appropriate notice of the criteria for an award of TDIU, and such notice must be sent to him on remand. The Board also notes that the Veteran has requested extraschedular consideration for his service-connected knee disorders, pursuant to 38 C.F.R. § 3.321(b)(1).  
The matters are REMANDED for the following action:
1. Furnish the Veteran a 38 C.F.R. § 3.159(b) notice letter addressing the Veteran’s claim for entitlement to TDIU. The Veteran should be allowed a reasonable period of time in which to respond. In accordance with the provisions of 38 C.F.R. § 3.159(c)(1), make efforts to obtain all VA and private treatment records concerning his claims.
2. Afford the Veteran a VA orthopedic examination to ascertain the current severity of his right and left knee disorders. The claims file must be reviewed by the examiner. The most up-to-date Disability Benefits Questionnaire must be employed, with information including testing in active and passive motion, and in weight-bearing and non-weightbearing. An opinion must be rendered as to the extent to which the knee disorders affect his ability to secure and follow a substantially gainful occupation.  
All opinions and conclusions must be supported by a rationale.
3. Prior to readjudicating the Veteran’s claims, review the claims file to ascertain whether referral for an extraschedular evaluation for one or both the of the service-connected knee disorders is warranted, per 38 C.F.R. § 3.321(b)(1).
 
A. C. MACKENZIE
Veterans Law Judge
Board of Veterans’ Appeals
ATTORNEY FOR THE BOARD	B. Banks, Associate Counsel