Citation Nr: 21030069
Decision Date: 05/17/21	Archive Date: 05/17/21

DOCKET NO. 15-40 550
DATE: May 17, 2021

REMANDED

Entitlement to service connection for a left hip condition, as secondary to service-connected lumbosacral strain, is remanded.

REASONS FOR REMAND

The Veteran served on active duty from April 1983 to March 1989. This issue was previously before the Board in March 2019 when it, and a claim for service connection for left leg tingling and numbness, were remanded as inextricably intertwined with a claim for service connection for lumbosacral strain that was itself remanded for further development to include a VA examination and etiology opinion.

The Veteran was afforded VA examinations and medical opinions addressing all three claims in November 2019. Based on positive etiology opinions, service connection for the lumbosacral strain and secondary left lower extremity radiculopathy claims was granted in a March 2020 rating decision, both with effective dates in June 2012. As this represents a full grant of the benefits sought on appeal with respect to these two issues, they are no longer in appellate status. See Grantham v. Brown, 114 F.3d 1156 (Fed. Cir. 1997).

The Board acknowledges that the examiner also provided a negative etiology for secondary service connection for a left hip condition in a November 2019 medical opinion. The rationale for the opinion indicates that the Veteran's service treatment records (STRs) were silent for any hip conditions, the Veteran has a history of hip symptoms caused by sciatic radiculopathy, and he denies a primary hip condition. The Board finds this rationale inadequate and devoid of relevant information necessary for adjudication of the Veteran's claim insofar as a left hip condition is concerned, and a clarification is required. The examiner appears to have disregarded the left hip condition diagnosis he confirmed in the November 2019 VA hip and thigh conditions examination, and he did not address the Veteran's lay contentions, noted throughout the record, that his left hip condition is related to his lower back condition. As further medical clarification and a clearer rationale is needed, a remand for an addendum opinion is warranted. See Bowling v. Principi, 15 Vet. App. 1, 12 (2001).

The matters are REMANDED for the following action:

Return the matter to the examiner that issued the December 2019 opinion and obtain an addendum to the opinion. If that individual is unavailable, the claims file should be reviewed by a similarly qualified medical professional. 

The examiner is asked to provide an opinion as to whether the left hip disorder is at least as likely as not (a 50 percent or greater probability) caused or aggravated by a service-connected disability (listed in a March 2020 rating decision), specifically to include the service-connected lumbosacral strain with intervertebral disc syndrome and left lower extremity radiculopathy. The examiner should note that the term "aggravated by" refers to a chronic or permanent worsening of the underlying condition, as contrasted to mere temporary or intermittent flare-ups of symptoms that resolve and return to the baseline level of disability. If the opinion is that a service-connected disability or combination of service-connected disabilities aggravated any of the above listed conditions, the examiner should specify, so far as possible, the degree of disability resulting from such aggravation.

All opinions must be supported by a complete rationale.

 

 

A. C. MACKENZIE

Veterans Law Judge

Board of Veterans' Appeals

Attorney for the Board	B. Banks, 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.