Citation Nr: 22012225
Decision Date: 03/02/22	Archive Date: 03/02/22

DOCKET NO. 16-28 997
DATE: March 2, 2022

REMANDED

Entitlement to an initial compensable rating for limitation of left hip extension is remanded.

Entitlement to an initial compensable rating for limitation of left hip flexion is remanded.

Entitlement to an initial rating higher than 10 percent for left hip strain for the period on appeal prior to December 4, 2015, is remanded.

Entitlement to an initial rating higher than 20 percent for left hip strain from December 4, 2015, is remanded.

REASONS FOR REMAND

The Veteran served on active duty from December 1988 to February 1994, January 2003 to April 2004, June 2007 to October 2007, and July 2009 to July 2010.  She also had Army Reserve service.

These matters come to the Board of Veterans' Appeals (Board) on appeal from a May 2013 rating decision issued by a Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) Regional Office (RO).

The Board remanded these matters in November 2018 and June 2021 for additional development.

1. Entitlement to an initial compensable rating for limitation of left hip extension

2. Entitlement to an initial compensable rating for limitation of left hip flexion

3.-4. Entitlement to an initial rating higher than 10 percent for left hip strain for the period on appeal prior to December 4, 2015, and higher than 20 percent thereafter

The Veteran was provided a VA hip and thigh conditions examinations in July 2021, and a VA addendum opinion was provided in August 2021, pursuant to       the Board's June 2021 remand. The Board remand requested, in part, that a VA opinion be provided that addresses range of motion findings for the left hip in active motion, passive motion, weight-bearing, non-weight-bearing and with the opposite undamaged joint throughout the appeal period (since July 2010). In the August 2021 VA opinion, the examiner did not provide the requested retroactive opinion, but rather, merely reiterated the range of motion findings documented     in the December 2010, June 2015 and July 2021 VA examination reports. Thus, another remand is required. See Stegall v. West, 11 Vet. App. 268, 271 (1998).

The matters are REMANDED for the following action:

1. Obtain updated VA treatment records dated since December 2020. If any requested records are unavailable, the Veteran should be notified of such.

2. After records development is completed, return the claims file to the VA examiner who provided the August 2021 VA opinion, if available, for an addendum opinion. If that examiner is not available, the claims file should be provided to another examiner to obtain the requested opinion. If a new examination is deemed necessary, one should be scheduled.

After reviewing the claims file, the examiner is asked to provide a retrospective opinion regarding left hip range of motion. Specifically, the clinician should provide estimates for left hip range of motion on (1) active motion, (2) passive motion, (3) weight-bearing, (4) non-weight-bearing, and (5) the opposite undamaged joint from July 2010 to the present. The estimates should be provided in degrees, if possible. The examiner's opinion should be based on estimates derived from information procured from relevant sources within the claims file, including VA examination reports, medical treatment records and lay statements of the Veteran. If the requested retrospective opinion cannot be provided, the examiner should explain why.

 

 

K. A. BANFIELD

Veterans Law Judge

Board of Veterans' Appeals

Attorney for the Board	M. C. Birder

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.