Citation Nr: 21030076 Decision Date: 05/17/21 Archive Date: 05/17/21 DOCKET NO. 16-43 753 DATE: May 17, 2021 REMANDED Entitlement to service connection for a bilateral achilles tendon disorder is remanded. Entitlement to service connection for a bilateral ankle disorder is remanded. REASONS FOR REMAND 1. Entitlement to service connection for a bilateral achilles tendon disorder is remanded. 2. Entitlement to service connection for a bilateral ankle disorder is remanded. The Veteran served in the U.S. Army from December 1973 to January 1994. His awards and decorations include a Parachute Badge. The Board previously remanded this case for additional development in January 2019. The matter has now returned to the Board for appellate review. As an initial matter, the Board observes that the Veteran has been granted service connection for a lumbar spine disorder, a left hip disorder, a right knee disorder, and bilateral pes planus by the Regional Office (RO) in an August 2020 rating decision. As such the Veteran has received a full grant of benefits for these claims and they are no longer before the Board. The only remaining issues are set forth above. Review of the Veteran's service treatment records reveal he was treated several times in service for pain related to his knees, ankles, and achilles tendon. See e.g., October 1980 and February 1993 service treatment records. Further, the separation examination, while it noted all lower extremities and joints were normal, indicated possible early degenerative joint disease of the Veteran's right knee and right ankle. Moreover, the Veteran indicated on his report of medical history that he experienced swollen painful joints and swollen ankles. Therefore, in rendering the unfavorable opinion above, it does not appear the examiner considered all the Veteran's service treatment records or the Veteran's assertions that his claimed disabilities are related to his service, specifically, his jumps during jumping school and other duties involving jumps with 100-pound sacks. The Veteran was afforded a VA examination in connection with his bilateral ankle, and bilateral achilles tendon claims in April 2014. Upon examination, the examiner opined that it is less likely than not the claimed disorders were incurred in or caused by the Veteran's military service. In so doing, he noted the Veteran had not been diagnosed with a chronic condition during active duty, and his separation examination was normal. However, there was no further rationale provided. In its prior remand, the Board found that the April 2014 VA opinion was inadequate for purposes of determining service connection because it failed to consider the Veteran's competent lay statements and it also provides an inadequate rationale. However, further development on these issues was not specifically directed. Therefore, the Board finds that a remand is required to address this deficiency. See Barr v. Nicholson, 21 Vet. App. 303, 311 (2007); see also Bowling v. Principi, 15 Vet. App. 1, 12 (2001) (emphasizing the Board's duty to return an inadequate examination report "if further evidence or clarification of the evidence... is essential for a proper appellate decision"). Accordingly, a remand is warranted to obtain a new VA examination to determine the nature and etiology of the Veteran's claimed bilateral achilles tendon disorder and bilateral ankle disorder. The matters are REMANDED for the following action: The Veteran should be afforded a VA examination to determine the nature and etiology of any bilateral ankle disorder and any bilateral achilles tendon disorder that may be present. Any and all studies, tests, and evaluations deemed necessary by the examiner should be performed. In rendering this opinion, the examiner should consider the Veteran's assertions and review all pertinent records associated with the claims file. The examiner should note the Veteran is competent to attest to factual matters of which he has first-hand knowledge, including observable symptomatology. If there is a medical basis to support or doubt the history provided by the Veteran, the examiner should provide a fully reasoned explanation. The examiner should opine as to whether it is at least as likely as not that the Veteran has a current bilateral ankle and bilateral achilles tendon disorder that are related to his military service, including any symptomatology and injury therein. The examiner should address the Veteran's lay statements that his bilateral ankle disorders are related to his service, specifically, from his repeated jumps during jump school. (The term "at least as likely as not" does not mean within the realm of medical possibility, but rather that the medical evidence both for and against a conclusion is so evenly divided that it is as medically sound to find in favor of conclusion as it is to find against it.) A clear rationale for all opinions would be helpful, and a discussion of the facts and medical principles involved would be of considerable assistance to the Board. Because it is important "that each disability is viewed in relation to its history", copies of all pertinent records in the Veteran's claims file, or in the alternative, the claims file, must be made available to the examiner for review. MICHAEL D. LYON Veterans Law Judge Board of Veterans' Appeals Attorney for the Board K. Scanlan, 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.