Citation Nr: 21067210 Decision Date: 11/03/21 Archive Date: 11/03/21 DOCKET NO. 18-24 500 DATE: November 3, 2021 REMANDED Entitlement to a disability rating in excess of 10 percent for left leg numbness associated with the sciatic nerve is remanded. Entitlement to a disability rating in excess of 10 percent for right leg numbness associated with the sciatic nerve prior to February 19, 2020,is remanded. Entitlement to a disability rating in excess of 20 percent for right leg numbness associated with the sciatic nerve from February 19, 2020, is remanded. REASONS FOR REMAND The Veteran served on active duty from February 2003 to March 2012. This appeal comes to the Board of Veterans' Appeals (Board) from a Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) February 2017 rating decision of the Agency of Original Jurisdiction (AOJ). In July 2020 the Board, in pertinent part, denied the Veteran's claims that are currently on appeal. The Veteran appealed the Board's decision to the United States Court of Appeals for Veterans Claims (Court). In June 2021 the Court, pursuant to a Joint Motion for Partial Remand (JMPR), remanded the above issues back to the Board for further development consistent with the directives of the JMPR. While the Board regrets the additional delay, a further remand is necessary to allow the Board and the AOJ to properly develop the Veteran's claims as directed by the Court. 1. Entitlement to a disability rating in excess of 10 percent for left leg numbness associated with the sciatic nerve is remanded. 2. Entitlement to a disability rating in excess of 10 percent for right leg numbness associated with the sciatic nerve prior to February 19, 2020, is remanded. 3. Entitlement to a disability rating in excess of 20 percent for right leg numbness associated with the sciatic nerve from February 19, 2020, is remanded. The Veteran contends that his service-connected bilateral sciatic nerve conditions warrant increased disability ratings. As noted above, the Court remanded the Veteran's claim for additional development. The Court specifically noted that the Board must ensure VA's duty to assist has been fulfilled. To do so, the Court directed that private, non-VA medical records through VA Community Care were to be associated with the claims file, and to obtain "an addendum opinion ... on the nature, severity, duration, and etiology" of the Veteran's flare-ups. Therefore, the Board finds that a further remand is necessary to allow the Veteran to fully develop his claim. The matters are REMANDED for the following action: 1. Obtain private, non-VA treatment records from providers whom the Veteran has seen through the Community Care program, to include (but not limited to) records uploaded into VistA Imaging. Requested records should include those records purportedly scanned into VistA Imaging in February 2020 as well as records of chiropractic visits from March 2018 to April 2019. If medical release authorizations are necessary, the AOJ shall provide the Veteran with the required documentation to be submitted. All documentation sent and received by the AOJ must be associated with the claims file. 2. After the above has been completed, afford the Veteran a VA examination by a qualified medical professional to determine the nature and severity of his bilateral leg numbness associated with the sciatic nerve including the "nature, severity, duration, and etiology" of the degree of functional loss during flare-ups. The examiner shall be provided with a copy of the Veteran's claims file, as well as a copy of these remand directives. The examiner should provide a full description of the disability and report all signs and symptoms necessary for evaluating the Veteran's disability under the rating criteria. In so doing, the examiner must attempt to elicit information regarding the severity, frequency, and duration of any flare-ups, and the degree of functional loss during flare-ups during the pendency of this appeal (from 2016 to present). If it is not possible to provide a specific measurement based on direct observation, the examiner should provide an estimate, if at all possible, of the additional impairment due to flare-ups based on the other evidence of record and the Veteran's statements. If it is not possible to provide a specific measurement without speculation, the examiner must state whether the need to speculate is due to a deficiency in the state of general medical knowledge (no one could respond given medical science and the known facts), a deficiency in the record (additional facts are required), or the examiner (does not have the knowledge or training). The examiner must specifically address whether the Veteran's flare-ups are due to his left and right leg numbness, or to some other condition (to include but not limited to his other service-connected disabilities). The examiner must also address the lay statements provided by the Veteran and his wife regarding his bilateral leg numbness. The examiner must provide a detailed rationale for all opinions rendered. If the examiner cannot provide the required opinions without resorting to mere speculation, the examiner must explain why that is the case. S. L. Kennedy Veterans Law Judge Board of Veterans' Appeals Attorney for the Board M. Neville, 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.