Citation Nr: 21013264 Decision Date: 03/09/21 Archive Date: 03/09/21 DOCKET NO. 18-15 440 DATE: March 9, 2021 REMANDED Entitlement to service connection for a left hip condition is remanded. REASONS FOR REMAND The Veteran served on active duty from January 1989 to June 1998. This matter is before the Board of Veterans’ Appeals (Board) on appeal from a July 2014 rating decision issued by a Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) Regional Office (RO). The Veteran testified at a hearing before the undersigned Veterans Law Judge (VLJ) in January 2020. A transcript of the hearing is associated with the electronic claims file. 1. Entitlement to service connection for a left hip condition is remanded. In May 2013, the Veteran filed an application for service connection for a bilateral hip condition, among other things. The Veteran was given a VA examination for her hips in March 2019, wherein the examiner diagnosed right hip bursitis, but found no objective evidence to support a diagnosis of a left hip condition. However, the Board notes that the examiner did find limitation of motion of the left hip. Regarding service connection, the examiner noted that while the Veteran was diagnosed with left and right hip bursitis during active service, she had no current left hip condition, therefore no nexus could be established. The Board notes that in a September 2019 rating decision, the RO granted service connection for the right hip bursitis. At her January 2020 Board hearing, the Veteran testified that she continues to suffer from daily pain in the left hip, but that at her March 2019 VA examination she was experiencing a flareup in her right hip. Thus, the Veteran contends that the VA examiner misunderstood her complaints of pain in the right hip to mean she did not have any left hip pain. As the Veteran has testified to ongoing left hip problems which require her to take Mortin on a daily basis and she was diagnosed with left hip bursitis during her active service, the Board finds that remand for another VA examination to determine whether the Veteran has a current left hip condition is warranted. The matters are REMANDED for the following action: 1. Update the electronic file with any new VA treatment records and private treatment records. 2. Schedule the Veteran for a VA examination for her left hip condition. The electronic claims file must be reviewed by the examiner, and a note that it was reviewed should be included in the report. The examiner should answer the following question: (a.) Is it at least as likely as not (i.e., probability of 50 percent or more) that the Veteran’s left hip condition is etiologically related to her active service? In formulating an opinion, the examiner should specifically consider and address: (1) the Veteran’s January 1992 in-service diagnosis of left hip bursitis; (2) the March 2019 VA examination wherein the examiner found a limited range of motion in the Veteran’s left hip; and (3) the Veteran’s January 2020 hearing testimony regarding her ongoing left hip pain. A detailed rationale for the opinion must be provided. If the examiner is unable to offer the requested opinion, it is essential that the examiner offer a rationale for the conclusion that an opinion could not be provided without resort to speculation, together with a statement as to whether there is additional evidence that could enable an opinion to be provided, or whether the inability to provide the opinion is based on the limits of medical knowledge.  TANYA SMITH Veterans Law Judge Board of Veterans’ Appeals Attorney for the Board K. Ruiz, 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.