Decision Date: 10/31/95				Archive Date: 
10/31/95 
DOCKET NO.  94-00 637	)	DATE 
	) 
	) 
 
On appeal from the 
Department of Veterans Affairs Regional Office in Detroit, 
Michigan 
 
 
THE ISSUE 
 
Entitlement to service connection for a skin disorder other 
than service-connected tinea pedis, to include residuals of 
exposure to Agent Orange. 
 
 
REPRESENTATION 
 
Appellant represented by:	Veterans of Foreign Wars of 
the United States 
 
 
WITNESS AT HEARING ON APPEAL 
 
Appellant 
 
 
ATTORNEY FOR THE BOARD 
 
Alberto H. Zapata, Associate Counsel 
INTRODUCTION 
 
The veteran served on active duty from July 1966 to April 
1968. 
 
This matter comes to the Board of Veterans' Appeals (Board) 
on appeal from a rating decision of the Department of 
Veterans Affairs (VA) Regional Office (RO) in Detroit, 
Michigan. 
 
 
REMAND 
 
In a March 1979 rating decision, the RO granted service 
connection for tinea pedis assigning a 10 percent disability 
rating, and denied service connection for dermatophytosis 
and neurodermatitis of the knees and legs.  In July 1982, 
the veteran submitted a statement in which he requested an 
increase in his disability rating due to his dermatitis 
problem.  In October 1982, the RO reduced the veteran's 
disability rating to noncompensable, and also denied service 
connection for atopic dermatitis with eczema although it 
does not appear that service connection for atopic 
dermatitis with eczema had been requested by the veteran.  
That determination was not appealed. 
 
A review of the record reveals that the veteran has 
consistently claimed service connection for a skin condition 
over his entire body due to exposure to Agent Orange.  The 
RO, however, has developed the issue of an increased rating 
for service-connected tinea pedis instead of the issue of 
entitlement to service connection for a skin condition other 
than the service-connected tinea pedis.  In a March 1993 
statement, the veteran clearly stated that he was not 
pursuing an increased rating for his service connected 
disability, but instead was claiming service connection for 
the skin condition covering his whole body.  In light of the 
veteran's desire and clear written statements concerning his 
claims, the Board is of the opinion that the issue the 
veteran desires to pursue is that of service connection for 
a skin disorder other than his currently service-connected 
tinea pedis and not the issue currently certified before the 
Board, namely, entitlement to an increased rating for 
service-connected tinea pedis.  Therefore, the Board remands 
this case to the RO so that the proper issue may be fully 
developed pursuant to the veteran's contentions and 
directions. 
 
Accordingly, the case is REMANDED to the RO for the 
following actions: 
 
1.  The RO should request the veteran to provide the names, 
addresses, and approximate dates of treatment for all health 
care providers who have treated him for his skin disorder 
since his discharge from service.  When the requested 
information and any necessary authorization have been 
received, the RO should attempt to obtain copies of all 
treatment records identified by the veteran which are not 
currently of record. 
 
2.  Then, the RO should arrange for a VA examination of the 
veteran by a board-certified dermatologist, if available, to 
determine the nature and extent of the veteran's skin 
disorder.  All indicated studies should be performed and the 
veteran's entire body should be assessed for involvement.  
The examiner should specifically comment on whether it is at 
least as likely as not that any ascertained skin disability 
is related to his service-connected skin disorder or 
directly to service, to include possible exposure to Agent 
Orange.  The rationale for all opinions expressed should be 
explained.  It is imperative that a copy of this REMAND be 
provided to the examiner, and the claims folder must be made 
available for review prior to the examination. 
 
3.  Thereafter, the RO should undertake any other indicated 
development and adjudicate the issue appearing on the title 
page of this remand. 
 
4.  If the benefit listed on the title page of this remand 
is not granted to the veteran's satisfaction and a Notice of 
Disagreement is received, the veteran and his representative 
should be provided a Statement of the Case on all issues in 
appellate status and afforded a reasonable opportunity to 
respond. 
 
Thereafter, the case should be returned to the Board for 
further appellate action, if otherwise in order.  No action 
is required of the veteran until he is otherwise notified by 
the RO.  By this remand the Board intimates no opinion as to 
any final outcome warranted. 
 
 
 
		 
	F. JUDGE FLOWERS 
	Member, Board of Veterans' Appeals 
 
 
The Board of Veterans' Appeals Administrative Procedures 
Improvement Act, Pub. L. No. 103-271, § 6, 108 Stat. 740, 
___ (1994), permits a proceeding instituted before the Board 
to be assigned to an individual member of the Board for a 
determination.  This proceeding has been assigned to an 
individual member of the Board. 
 
Under 38 U.S.C.A. § 7252 (West 1991), only a decision of the 
Board of Veterans' Appeals is appealable to the United 
States Court of Veterans Appeals.  This remand is in the 
nature of a preliminary order and does not constitute a 
decision of the Board on the merits of your appeal.  38 
C.F.R. § 20.1100(b) (1994). 
 
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