Citation Nr: 22018445 Decision Date: 03/29/22 Archive Date: 03/29/22 DOCKET NO. 11-13 036 DATE: March 29, 2022 REMANDED Entitlement to service connection of a bilateral ankle disorder is remanded. Entitlement to service connection of a right knee disorder is remanded. REASONS FOR REMAND The Veteran served on active duty from January 1983 to December 1998, with additional periods of active duty for training (ACDUTRA) and inactive duty for training (INACDUTRA) with the United States Air Force Reserve. This matter comes before the Board of Veteran's Appeals (Board) on appeal from a February 2010 rating decision issued by a Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) Regional Office (RO). As a matter of procedural background, these issues previously came before the Board in January 2020, at which time the Board denied the claims. The Veteran appealed the Board's denial of the claims addressed herein to the Court of Appeals for Veterans Claims (Court), and in August 2021, the Court issued a Memorandum Decision, reversing the Board's prior decision and remanding those issues to the Board for further development as outlined in the Memorandum Decision and additional appellate consideration. The Board notes that it also denied claims of service connection of bilateral hearing loss and a right wrist disorder in the January 2020 rating decision. As was noted in the Memorandum Decision from the Court, the Veteran has not contested those decisions and they are now final. In August 2017, prior to the previous decision on the issues on appeal, the Veteran testified before the undersigned Veterans Law Judge. A transcript of that hearing is of record. 1. Entitlement to service connection of a bilateral ankle disorder is remanded. 2. Entitlement to service connection of a right knee disorder is remanded. The Court has reversed the Board's prior decision with regard to these two issues and remanded them for further development. Specifically, the Court has found issue with the March 2019 VA examination and medical opinions obtained in connection with these claims. The Court's issue with the 2019 VA medical opinions are twofold. First, the Court has ruled that the VA examiner who provided the opinion relied upon an incorrect factual premise in giving the opinions. Specifically, the examiner determined that the Veteran's service treatment records do not document treatment for either an ankle or right knee disorder during service. However, the Court has noted three specific citations in the service treatment records (foot/heel injuries in September 1987 and July 1989, and complaints of right knee pain in September 1987) which the examiner did not explicitly acknowledge, and thus speak to treatment for knee and ankle symptoms in service. Additionally, the Court found issue with the examiner's conclusions because the examiner failed to address the Veteran's "implicitly credible" statements that he had experienced pain in his ankles and right knee since the time of service, for which he has self-medicated throughout the years. Based on this, the Court has ruled that the proper remedy is for VA to obtain adequate opinions to inform its decision on direct service connection, prior to readjudicating the appeal. As such, the Board will remand the appeal so that addendum opinions may be obtained which assess whether or not the Veteran's bilateral ankle or right knee disabilities are directly related to active service. The matters are REMANDED for the following action: 1. Invite the Veteran to submit any additional evidence in support of his appeal. 2. Obtain an addendum opinion from a competent examiner regarding the Veteran's bilateral ankle condition. The complete claims file should be made available to the examiner selected to conduct the examination. The examiner is requested to review the complete claims file and provide the following opinion: Is it at least a likely as not that the Veteran's bilateral ankle disability originated in service or may otherwise be attributable to any incident, illness or injury of active service? In rendering the opinion, the examiner is requested to provide a detailed explanation which must include discussion of the Veteran's treatment for foot and ankle pain on September 19, 1987, and July 16, 1989. The examiner must also discuss the Veteran's competent reports of ongoing ankle pain from the time of service, which he has testified that he self-treated with over-the-counter pain medication. 3. Obtain an addendum opinion from a competent examiner regarding the Veteran's right knee condition. The complete claims file should be made available to the examiner selected to conduct the examination. The examiner is requested to review the complete claims file and provide the following opinion: Is it at least a likely as not that the Veteran's right knee disability originated in service or may otherwise be attributable to any incident, illness or injury of active service? In rendering the opinion, the examiner is requested to provide a detailed explanation which must include discussion of the Veteran's treatment for right knee pain on September 19, 1987. The examiner must also discuss the Veteran's competent reports of ongoing knee pain from the time of service, which he has testified that he self-treated with over-the-counter pain medication. B.T. KNOPE Veterans Law Judge Board of Veterans' Appeals Attorney for the Board M. Pryce, Counsel