Citation Nr: 18152058 Decision Date: 11/21/18 Archive Date: 11/20/18 DOCKET NO. 16-44 291 DATE: November 21, 2018 REMANDED Entitlement to service connection for a left-hand disability is remanded. REASONS FOR REMAND The Veteran served on active duty from November 1980 through November 1984. This case comes before the Board of Veterans’ Appeals (Board) from a March 2015 rating decision. 1. Entitlement to service connection for a left-hand disability is remanded. The Veteran seeks service connection for claimed residuals of an in-service broken left hand. He asserts that he has had trouble with his left hand since the in-service break. In February 2015, VA made a formal finding that it was unable to locate the Veteran’s service treatment records and that future efforts would be futile. In situations where the service treatment records are incomplete, lost, or presumed destroyed through no fault of the Veteran, then VA has a heightened duty to assist in the development of the case; as well as a heightened obligation to explain findings and conclusions, and to consider, carefully, the benefit-of-the-doubt doctrine. See Marciniak v. Brown, 10 Vet. App. 198, 200 (1997) (citing O'Hare v. Derwinski, 1 Vet. App. 365, 367 (1991)). The Veteran submitted lay statements from three others testifying to a broken left-hand while in service and has provide medical documentation of a current disability impacting his left hand. Specifically, in June 2016, the Veteran submitted three statements from separate people attesting to the fact that the Veteran returned home from basic training with a cast on his left hand. Further, in October 2016, the Veteran submitted a private x-ray report of the left hand. Although difficult to read, the report appears to indicate that the x-ray of the left hand revealed old healed fracture deformities of the long and ring finger metacarpal shafts with some prominent osteophytosis along the long finger metacarpal head. Additionally, some minimal degenerative changes were seen along the index finger metacarpophalangeal (MCP) joint. In light of the foregoing, the Board finds that the Veteran has a current left hand disability which may be linked to his period of active service. To date, no VA medical opinion has been obtained with regard to the Veteran’s claimed left-hand disability. Accordingly, as the record indicates that the Veteran has a current disability that may be associated with active service, a remand seeking such an examination and opinion is necessary. McLendon v. Nicholson, 20 Vet. App. 79 (2006). The matter is REMANDED for the following action: 1. Identify and obtain any pertinent, outstanding VA and private treatment records and associate them with the claims file. 2. Schedule the Veteran for an examination to determine the nature and etiology of any current left-hand disability. The examiner should specifically consider the lay statements submitted in support of the Veteran’s claim. The examiner should opine as to whether it is at least as likely as not (a 50 percent probability or greater) that any current left-hand disability had its onset in service, was caused my military service, or is related to military service. Although the Veteran’s STRs are unavailable, the Veteran has credibly reported that he suffered a broken left hand in service, and he has provided several lay statements which support this contention. Therefore, the Board concedes that an in-service injury occurred. Please note that a medical opinion which concludes that a disability is not related to service solely because there is absence of corroborative medical records is inadequate. All opinions must be accompanied by a complete rationale and the examiner should consider the Veteran's self-reported history with regard to onset and observable symptoms. If the examiner is unable to reach an opinion without resort to speculation, he or she should explain the reasons for this inability. L. B. CRYAN Veterans Law Judge Board of Veterans’ Appeals ATTORNEY FOR THE BOARD A. Shelton, Law Clerk