Citation Nr: 20007655 Decision Date: 01/29/20 Archive Date: 01/29/20 DOCKET NO. 18-09 749 DATE: January 29, 2020 ORDER Entitlement to service connection for loss of teeth is denied. FINDING OF FACT The Veteran does not have a dental disability due to loss of substance of body of maxilla or mandible from trauma or disease such as osteomyelitis. CONCLUSION OF LAW The criteria for entitlement to service connection for loss of teeth have not been met. 38 U.S.C. §§ 1110, 1131, 5107; 38 C.F.R. §§ 3.102, 3.303, 3.381, 4.150. REASONS AND BASES FOR FINDING AND CONCLUSION The Veteran served on active duty in the United States Army from July 1953 to May 1955. The Veteran’s decorations included (among other awards), the Korean Service Medal and the National Defense Service Medal. This appeal comes to the Board of Veterans’ Appeals (Board) from an October 2015 rating decision of the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) Regional Office (RO) in Montgomery, Alabama. In April 2019, the Veteran testified at a video conference hearing before the undersigned Veterans Law Judge. In June 2019, the Board remanded the issues of service connection for bilateral hearing loss and service connection for loss of teeth for further development. In October 2019, the RO granted service connection for bilateral hearing loss. As this claim was granted in full, it no longer remains on appeal. AB v. Brown, 6 Vet. App. 35 (1993). Entitlement to service connection for loss of teeth. The Veteran is seeking compensation for loss of teeth. He contends that while he was stationed in Korea, he had to brush his teeth with Lava soap because he did not have tooth paste. He believes this caused his current problems with loss of teeth and related functionality. See January 2020 Appellate Brief. Generally, to establish service connection, a claimant must show (1) a present disability; (2) an in-service incurrence or aggravation of a disease or injury; and (3) a causal relationship between the present disability and the disease or injury incurred or aggravated during service, the so-called “nexus” requirement. See 38 U.S.C. §§ 1110, 1131; 38 C.F.R. § 3.303; see also Shedden v. Principi, 381 F.3d 1163, 1167 (Fed. Cir. 2004). The dental conditions for which service-connected compensation benefits are available are set under 38 C.F.R. § 4.150. Disability compensation and VA outpatient dental treatment may be provided only for certain specified types of service-connected dental disorders. For other types of service-connected dental disorders, the claimant may receive treatment only and not compensation. 38 U.S.C. § 1712; 38 C.F.R. §§ 3.381, 4.150, 17.161. Dental disabilities that may be awarded compensable disability ratings are set forth under 38 C.F.R. § 4.150. These disabilities include chronic osteomyelitis or osteoradionecrosis of the maxilla or mandible, loss of the mandible, nonunion or malunion of the mandible, loss of the maxilla, nonunion or malunion of the maxilla, limited temporomandibular motion, loss of the ramus, loss of the condyloid or coronoid processes, loss of the hard palate, loss of teeth due to the loss of substance of the body of the maxilla or mandible and where the lost masticatory surface cannot be restored by suitable prosthesis, when the bone loss is a result of trauma or disease but not the result of periodontal disease. 38 C.F.R. § 4.150. Under 38 C.F.R. § 3.381, treatable carious teeth, replaceable missing teeth, dental or alveolar abscesses, and periodontal disease are to be considered service-connected solely for the purpose of establishing eligibility for outpatient dental treatment as provided in 38 C.F.R. § 17.161. The Board will address whether the Veteran is entitled to service connection for VA compensation purposes. In a March 2015 VA 21-3101 Request for Information, the National Personnel Records Center (NPRC) responded that part of the Veteran’s service treatment records/dental records had been destroyed by fire. However, the service treatment records that were available included a November 1953 Report of Dental Survey and an August 1954 Report of Dental Record; however, there was no indication of dental trauma or a chronic or systemic disease with loss of substance of the mandible and/or maxilla bone. VA sent the Veteran letters notifying him of the unavailability of his service treatment records and requested assistance with obtaining records with additional evidence of treatment. In June 2019, the Board remanded the issue to obtain records for the Veteran’s treatment for his dental disability. In response to the letters sent asking the Veteran for his assistance, VA was able to obtain a limited amount of records from a private dentist for periods of dental treatment from March 2017 to April 2019. These records indicated that the Veteran was seen for normal dental care. In this case, there is no competent medical or dental evidence of loss of teeth due to loss of substance of the body of the maxilla or mandible due to bone loss through trauma or other condition on which service connection could be allowed. Neither the service treatment records on file nor the Veteran indicate that the Veteran incurred an injury to the mandible or maxilla during service. Importantly, at the Veteran’s hearing, the undersigned VLJ specifically asked the Veteran about any incidents of in-service dental trauma. The Veteran described a post-service incident in which he was hit in the face by a wrench. The Veteran did not describe any in-service dental incident beyond his contention that he was not furnished toothpaste. Accordingly, there is no competent medical evidence that the Veteran has any current dental disability for which compensation is payable. See 38 C.F.R. § 4.150. In an April 2019 Appellate Brief, the Veteran argued that VA should obtain a medical opinion regarding whether his current dental disability is related to the time in military service when he had to brush his teeth with Lava soap. However, the Board finds that there is no basis to remand for a medical opinion because the Veteran does not have a dental disability for which service connection can be granted. Therefore, a remand for such a medical opinion would be futile. See McLendon v. Nicholson, 20 Vet. App. 79 (2006) (discussing when VA’s duty to provide an examination or obtain a medical opinion is triggered). (Continued on next page) Based on the foregoing, the Board concludes that there is no basis under the law for the award of service-connected VA disability compensation for loss of teeth, as there is no medical or dental evidence that the Veteran has a dental disorder falling under the categories of compensable dental conditions set forth in 38 C.F.R. § 4.150. As such, the Board must deny the claim for service connection for a dental disability, for compensation purposes. Evan M. Deichert Veterans Law Judge Board of Veterans’ Appeals Attorney for the Board J. Crawford, Associate Counsel The Board’s decision in this case is binding only with respect to the instant matter decided. This decision is not precedential, and does not establish VA policies or interpretations of general applicability. 38 C.F.R. § 20.1303.