Citation Nr: 21065929 Decision Date: 10/28/21 Archive Date: 10/28/21 DOCKET NO. 16-42 221 DATE: October 28, 2021 REMANDED Service connection for a right knee disability is remanded. Service connection for a left knee disability is remanded. Service connection for a left shoulder disability is remanded. Service connection for a right shoulder disability is remanded. Service connection for left upper extremity carpal tunnel syndrome is remanded. Service connection for right upper extremity carpal tunnel syndrome is remanded. Service connection for a right ankle disability, to include osteoarthritis, is remanded. Service connection for a left ankle disability, to include osteoarthritis, is remanded. Service connection for chronic migraine headaches is remanded. REASONS FOR REMAND The Veteran served on active duty in the U.S. Navy from April 1986 to January 1993, and in the U.S. Army from November 2006 to March 2008 and from September 2010 to October 2011, with additional service in the National Guard. He was awarded the Combat Action Badge, the Southwest Asia Service Medal with Bronze Service Star, the Kuwait Liberation Medal, the Army Achievement Medal, the Army Commendation Medal, and the Navy Unit Commendation, among other decorations. The Board thanks the Veteran for his honorable service to the United States. The Veteran testified before the undersigned Veterans Law Judge during a November 2019 hearing. The Veteran's virtual file contains a transcript of the hearing. The Board remanded the claims on appeal, along with a claim for service connection for sleep apnea, for additional development in March 2020 and February 2021. A May 2021 rating decision granted service connection for obstructive sleep apnea and this issue is no longer before the Board. With respect to the remaining issues on appeal, the Board finds that there has not been substantial compliance with the Board's prior remands. Stegall v. West, 11 Vet. App. 268 (1998). Accordingly, the Board must remand each issue on appeal for additional development. 1. Service connection for a right knee disability is remanded. 2. Service connection for a left knee disability is remanded. 3. Service connection for a left shoulder disability is remanded. 4. Service connection for a right shoulder disability is remanded. 5. Service connection for left upper extremity carpal tunnel syndrome is remanded. 6. Service connection for right upper extremity carpal tunnel syndrome is remanded. 7. Service connection for a right ankle disability, to include osteoarthritis, is remanded. 8. Service connection for a left ankle disability, to include osteoarthritis, is remanded. 9. Service connection for chronic migraine headaches is remanded. The Board remands each issue to obtain outstanding records of VA treatment. The Board's March 2020 remand observed that the Veteran testified during the November 2019 hearing that he had received treatment at the Detroit VA Medical Center (VAMC) since approximately 1993. VA medical records associated with his virtual file were dated only as early as the mid-2000s. The remand requested that the agency of original jurisdiction (AOJ) obtain, among other things, the Veteran's outstanding VA medical records form the Detroit VAMC beginning in 1993. The Board's February 2021 remand observed that May 2020 VA correspondence informed the Veteran that in 2005 VA transitioned to electronic tracking of records of treatment administered at VAMCs. VA had requested his pre-2005 records from the Detroit VAMC, which responded that his treatment records began in 2005. The February 2021 remand additionally observed that the earliest VA treatment record in the Veteran's e-folder, dated in November 2004, was a Detroit VAMC Nursing Periop (sic) (1) Care Plan addressing an already planned surgery. The Board found that the existence of this record suggested that earlier VA treatment records exist. The Board observed that while the Veteran's e-folder appeared to have all electronic treatment records from the Detroit VAMC, it did not include copies of the paper treatment records dated before November 2004, which might now be retired or archived. Similarly, the Veteran's virtual file included no evidence of any attempt to obtain any such retired or archived paper treatment records. The remand requested that the AOJ obtain, among other things, the Veteran's VA paper medical records from the Detroit VAMC dated prior to November 2004. A review of the Veteran's virtual file reveals that VA has still not attempted to obtain any retired or archived paper treatment records dated prior to November 2004 from the Detroit VAMC. In May 2021, the St. Petersburg Regional Office requested that the Detroit VAMC make another search of any and all historical records not associated with the Veteran's electronic file. The Detroit VAMC responded in July 2021 that it determined that the November 2004 progress note referenced forthcoming treatment and therefore all records were available via VISTA/CAPRI. The Board is aware that the November 2004 Nursing Care Plan referred to upcoming treatment. Moreover, the Board points out that the July 2021 response ignores the Veteran's hearing testimony that he had received treatment at the Detroit VAMC since approximately 1993. Further, in his initial claim for VA benefits in 2012 he reported that he had received treatment at the John Dingell VA Medical Center in Detroit from "1996-Present". The July 2021 response also ignores the fact that by referring to an already planned upcoming surgery without providing any details, the Nursing Care Plan strongly suggests the existence of earlier VA treatment records. Nevertheless, the Detroit VAMC has not attempted to obtain any retired or archived paper treatment records dated prior to November 2004 from that facility. On remand, VA must obtain copies of any retired or archived paper treatment records dated prior to November 2004 from the Detroit VAMC. Since the Board is remanding these claims, the AOJ should also update the Veteran's virtual file to include all outstanding VA treatment records dated after February 25, 2021, the date of the most recent VA treatment record currently in the Veteran's e-folder. The matters are REMANDED for the following action: Please document efforts in detail to obtain and associate with the Veteran's e-folder copies of all outstanding VA treatment records, including: (a.) All VA paper medical records from the Detroit VAMC dated prior to November 2004 (please note that these may begin in approximately 1993 or 1996); and (b.) all other outstanding VA treatment records dated from February 25, 2021, to the present. M. C. GRAHAM Veterans Law Judge Board of Veterans' Appeals Attorney for the Board J. Davitian, 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.