Citation Nr: 21074717 Decision Date: 12/16/21 Archive Date: 12/16/21 DOCKET NO. 17-49 261 DATE: December 16, 2021 REMANDED Entitlement to service connection for right shoulder disability is remanded. REASONS FOR REMAND The Veteran served on active duty from December 1974 to February 1978, September 1999 to October 1999, and February 2008 to December 2008, with additional service in the Reserves. The records show two spelling variations of the Veteran's last name. Both spelling variations appear on the Veteran's DD Form 214's and other official documents. However, in May 2018, the Board issued a corrective order, finding that the Veteran's last name is as captioned above. The Board notes the Veteran submitted an August 2017 notice of disagreement, with respect to the July 2017 rating decision, for entitlement to (1) service connection for right shoulder disability and (2) service connection for radiculopathy of the right lower extremity. The Veteran was granted service connection for radiculopathy of the right lower extremity in a September 2017 rating decision. As such, only the right shoulder disability issue remains on appeal. The Veteran initially requested a video conference hearing in his September 2017 VA Form 9, but his appointed representative later withdrew his request in writing through a September 2020 Third Party Correspondence. Entitlement to service connection for right shoulder disability. Service treatment records (STR) indicate that during active duty the Veteran fell while running, landing on the right side of his body. See, e.g., August 25, 2008 STR. A July 2017 VA treatment record further indicated that the Veteran complained of right shoulder pain from his 2008 in-service fall. To date, the Veteran has not been afforded a VA examination as to these claimed symptoms. The Board concludes that the threshold for providing an examination has been met, and that the issue must be remanded so that the Veteran may be provided an examination as to his claimed right shoulder disability. See 38 U.S.C. § 5103A (d)(2); 38 C.F.R. § 3.159 (c)(4)(i); McLendon v. Nicholson, 20 Vet. App. 79, 81 (2006). The matters are REMANDED for the following action: 1. Obtain any outstanding VA treatment records and associate those documents with the Veteran's claims file. 2. After completion of the above, schedule the Veteran for a VA examination (or telehealth interview, review of the record, etc., if an in-person examination is not feasible) to determine the nature and likely etiology of any right shoulder disability. Copies of all pertinent records must be made available to the examiner for review. Based on review of the record and examination of the Veteran, the examiner must answer the following: (a) Identify all right shoulder disabilities found/shown by the record since June 2017. (b) Is it at least as likely as not that any diagnosed right shoulder disability is related to the Veteran's service? In answering this, the examiner must specifically discuss whether the disability is related to his 2008 in-service fall. A complete rationale must be provided for all opinions, citing to supporting factual data and medical literature, as appropriate. If the examiner cannot provide an opinion without resort to 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) and note what, if any, additional evidence would permit such an opinion to be made. B. G. LeMoine Acting Veterans Law Judge Board of Veterans' Appeals Attorney for the Board S. E. Bresler 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.