Citation Nr: 22017624 Decision Date: 03/25/22 Archive Date: 03/25/22 DOCKET NO. 18-32 741 DATE: March 25, 2022 ORDER Entitlement to service connection for a right hip disorder is denied. FINDING OF FACT The Veteran does not have a current right hip disability. CONCLUSION OF LAW The criteria for service connection for a right hip disorder have not been met. 38 U.S.C. §§ 1110, 1131, 5107; 38 C.F.R. §§ 3.102, 3.303. REASONS AND BASES FOR FINDING AND CONCLUSION The Veteran served on active duty from August 1978 to July 1981. The matter is before the Board of Veterans' Appeals (Board) on appeal from an August 2016 rating decision. In January 2021, he had a hearing before the undersigned Veterans Law Judge. In July 2021, the Board remanded the issues of entitlement to service connection for a back disorder and a right hip disorder for further development. Service connection for a back disorder was granted in January 2022; this constitutes a full grant of the issue on appeal, and it is no longer before the Board. In October 2021, the Veteran authorized the Board to obtain records from Drs. Barnwell, Lewis, Patel, and Walker. The Board exhausted efforts to obtain records from Drs. Barnwell and Lewis but did not make attempts to obtain records from Drs. Walker and Patel. However, on his authorization form, the Veteran indicated Drs. Walker and Patel only treated his back condition, for which service connection has been granted. Thus, if any private records are outstanding, they are unrelated to the issue on appeal. Accordingly, the Board finds that there was substantial compliance with the remand instructions and another remand is unnecessary. The Veteran seeks service connection for a right hip disorder. He contends that he injured his right hip in service and had intermittent pain thereafter, for which he self-medicated. His service treatment records show he incurred a right hip abrasion and hematoma playing baseball in June 1981. He was given a profile for his right hip injury. He waived his separation physical in May 1981 so there is no separation examination available. In the July 2016 VA hip conditions examination, he reported that he returned to active duty following his injury after bedrest and medication. Post-service treatment records do not show treatment for a current right hip disorder. In 2005 and 2006, the Veteran sought treatment from Dr. Vanderyt for low back pain that radiated down his legs. He did not complain about right hip pain at that time. He underwent an MRI which showed severe spinal stenosis L4-5, moderately severe spinal stenosis L3-4, and mild central disc bulge at L5-S1. Private records from Dr. French, which cover 2013 to 2019, show a long list of diagnoses but do not show a hip condition or documentation of hip pain (even though the records list back pain as a condition). In March 2016, the Veteran submitted a medical opinion from his private physician, Dr. Lewis, who stated the Veteran incurred a right hip injury in service and he currently has right hip pain. The Board does not find that this opinion is probative evidence of nexus, as discussed in the July 2021 remand, but considered it when assessing whether the Veteran has a current disability. Unfortunately, VA's attempts to obtain the Veteran's records from Dr. Lewis were unsuccessful. The Veteran underwent a VA hip conditions examination in June 2016 and reported that he sought treatment for a right hip condition in 2000 and was treated with pain medication and a heat rubbing compound. He reported that his pain was 7/10 and it is difficult to move and extend his right leg. The physical evaluation was normal, however, and he was not diagnosed with a right hip condition. X-rays were taken and were also normal. The VA examiner opined that it was less likely than not the Veteran had a right hip condition related to his in-service injury because the evidence does not support sequalae post injury and the examination and x-rays are negative for a current condition. Therefore, she opined that his in-service right hip contusion with hematoma resolved. In the January 2021 Board hearing, the Veteran testified that he injured his hip in service and self-medicated for intermittent pain for years after because it was difficult for him to obtain treatment. He finally sought treatment in approximately 1998 due to pain that radiated through his back and hip. He reported that he later underwent an MRI and received injections for his pain. While Dr. Lewis's records are unavailable, Dr. Vanderyt's records show that he underwent an MRI for low back pain that radiated in 2005. There were no hip-specific complaints or diagnosis, and he was referred for rehab for his back only. After the Board remand, the Veteran underwent private examinations, including for various musculoskeletal disorders, and submitted medical opinions to support his claims. These examinations and medical opinions did not document a hip diagnosis. An October 2021 back examination revealed back pain with muscle spasms, particularly on the right midline, and radiating pain related to his mechanical low back pain, lumbar strain, degenerative disc disease, spondylosis, and lumbar radiculopathy. Notably, these symptoms are like the Veteran's reported hip symptoms. After consideration of the lay and medical evidence, the Board finds that the weight of the evidence does not show a current hip disability. The available private treatment records do not show a current disorder and the June 2016 examination was negative for a disability. The Board considered the Veteran's reported symptoms as well as Dr. Lewis' private medical opinion but finds that these are insufficient to show a current disability. To the extent the evidence shows hip pain, it does not constitute a current disability because there is no evidence his pain has caused functional impairment which limited his earning capacity. See Saunders v. Wilkie, 886 F.3d 1356 (Fed. Cir. 2018). Instead, his records are negative for hip-related complaints and show that his impairment is caused by his back disability and radiculopathy (which is radiating pain due to the back disorder). The evidence also suggests that his reported hip symptoms stem from these disabilities rather than a separate and distinct hip disorder. Service connection may only be granted for a current disability; when a claimed condition is not shown, there may be no grant of service connection. See 38 U.S.C. § 1110; Rabideau v. Derwinski, 2 Vet. App. 141 (1992). Accordingly, the claim for service connection for a hip disorder is denied. MICHELLE L. KANE Veterans Law Judge Board of Veterans' Appeals Attorney for the Board M. Lavan 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.