Citation Nr: 21075727 Decision Date: 12/21/21 Archive Date: 12/21/21 DOCKET NO. 18-08 532 DATE: December 21, 2021 REMANDED Entitlement to service connection for rosacea, claimed as due to exposure to toxins at Fort McClellan, Alabama, is remanded. Entitlement to service connection for nocturnal seizures, claimed as due to exposure to toxins at Fort McClellan, Alabama, is remanded. Entitlement to service connection for muscle weakness, claimed as due to exposure to toxins at Fort McClellan, Alabama, is remanded. REASONS FOR REMAND The Veteran served on active duty from October 1988 to September 1990. This matter comes to the Board of Veterans' Appeals (Board) on appeal from a rating decision issued in October 2014 by the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) Regional Office. In July 2021, the Veteran testified at a Board hearing before the undersigned Veterans Law Judge. A transcript of the hearing is associated with the record. At such time, the undersigned held the record open for 60 days for the submission of additional evidence; however, none has been received to date. 1. Entitlement to service connection for rosacea, claimed as due to exposure to toxins at Fort McClellan, Alabama. 2. Entitlement to service connection for nocturnal seizures, claimed as due to exposure to toxins at Fort McClellan, Alabama. 3. Entitlement to service connection for muscle weakness, claimed as due to exposure to toxins at Fort McClellan, Alabama. The Veteran contends that he has disabilities manifested by rosacea, nocturnal seizures, and muscle weakness related to his exposure to toxins, to include polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs), while stationed at Fort McClellan, Alabama. In this regard, while his service treatment records are negative for any complaints, treatment, or diagnosis referable to such claimed disorders and he did not report symptoms or treatment for them for a number of years after his separation from service, his service personnel records reflect that he was stationed at Fort McClellan from October 18, 1988, to March 8, 1989. Additionally, in October 2019, the Veteran submitted an article entitled, "Airborne PCB in Western Anniston Hasn't Decreased, Despite Years of Cleanup," which addresses the presence of PCBs in property adjacent to Fort McClellan. Furthermore, a VA website regarding the presence of various chemicals and toxins at Fort McClellan (https://www.publichealth.va.gov/exposures/fort-mcclellan/index.asp) indicates that some members of the U.S. Army Chemical Corp School, Army Combat Development Command Chemical/Biological/ Radiological Agency, Army Military Police School and Women's Army Corps, among others, may have been exposed to one or more of several hazardous materials, likely at low levels, during their service at Fort McClellan. Potential exposures could have included, but are not limited to, the following: Radioactive compounds (cesium-137 and cobalt-60) used in decontamination training activities in isolated locations on base. Chemical warfare agents (mustard gas and nerve agents) used in decontamination testing activities in isolated locations on base Airborne polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs) from the Monsanto plant in the neighboring town. The website further advises that, although exposures to high levels of these compounds have been shown to cause a variety of adverse health effects in humans and laboratory animals, there is no evidence of exposures of this magnitude having occurred at Fort McClellan. It was also noted that, from 1929 to 1971, an off-post Monsanto chemical plant operated south of Fort McClellan in Anniston. PCBs from the plant entered into the environment, and the surrounding community was exposed. Since the 1990s, several investigations have been conducted to characterize the exposure of Anniston residents to PCBs from the Monsanto plant. In 2015, the Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry (ATSDR) published an assessment of the potential health risks caused by airborne PCBs in Anniston and concluded that the concentrations found were "not expected to result in an increased cancer risk or other harmful health effects in people living in the neighborhoods outside the perimeter of the former PCB manufacturing facility." Further, the evidence of record reflects current diagnoses of rosacea and carpal tunnel syndrome, and the Veteran has described persistent and recurrent symptoms related to nocturnal seizures. Consequently, the Board finds that, based on such evidence as well as his in-service exposure to toxins coincident with his service at Fort McClellan, a remand is necessary in order to afford him VA examination(s) so as to determine the nature and etiology of his claimed disorders. The matters are REMANDED for the following action: Afford the Veteran appropriate VA examination(s) so as to determine the nature and etiology of his claimed rosacea, nocturnal seizures, and muscle weakness. The record, to include a copy of this Remand must be made available to the examiner and all indicated tests should be conducted. Thereafter, the examiner should address the following inquiries: (A) Identify all current disabilities related to the Veteran's claimed rosacea, nocturnal seizures, and muscle weakness, to include his diagnosed rosacea and carpal tunnel syndrome, that have been present at any time proximate to his March 2014 claim, even if such are asymptomatic or have resolved. If the Veteran does not have a diagnosis of a claimed disorder, the examiner should indicate whether his reported symptoms result in functional impairment of earning capacity. If so, the examiner is advised that the Veteran has a current disability for compensation purposes. (B) For each current disability, the examiner should offer an opinion as to whether it is at least as likely as not (i.e., a 50 percent or greater probability) that it is related to the Veteran's acknowledged in-service exposure to toxins while stationed at Fort McClellan from October 18, 1988, to March 8, 1989, to include radioactive compounds (cesium-137 and cobalt-60), chemical warfare agents (mustard gas and nerve agents), and PCBs. A rationale for any opinion offered should be provided. A. JAEGER Veterans Law Judge Board of Veterans' Appeals Attorney for the Board Spielmann, Jill F. 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.