BVA9502267 
DOCKET NO.  93-07 574     )       DATE
          )
          )

On appeal from the decision of the
Department of Veterans Affairs Regional Office in St. Petersburg,
Florida

THE ISSUE

Entitlement to service connection for a right knee disability.

REPRESENTATION

Appellant represented by: The American Legion

ATTORNEY FOR THE BOARD

Bernard T. DoMinh, Associate Counsel

INTRODUCTION

The veteran served on active duty from January 1946 to December
1948.

This matter comes to the Board of Veterans' Appeals (Board) on
appeal from a rating decision by the St. Petersburg, Florida,
Regional Office (RO) of the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA),
which denied the veteran's claim for service connection for a
right knee condition.

REMAND

The veteran contends that he has a "cracked" right knee as a
result of an injury sustained during basic training in service,
and says that an X-ray study of his right knee conducted at the
Wade Park VAMC in Cleveland, Ohio, substantiates his allegation.
These records have not been obtained.

The veteran's claim is potentially well-grounded, and VA has a
duty to assist him in developing his claim.  38 U.S.C.A. §
5107(a) (West 1991);  38 C.F.R. §§ 3.103(a), 3.159 (1993).  As he
has identified the existence of records relevant to his claim,
this duty includes obtaining such records and as he has not been
examined, ordering an examination.  Murphy v. Derwinski, 1
Vet.App. 78 (1990); Littke v. Derwinski, 1 Vet.App. 90 (1990).

The case is REMANDED to the RO for the following development:

1.  The RO should obtain the VA medical
records from the VAMC in Wade Park,
Cleveland, Ohio.

2.  The RO should obtain the names and
addresses of all medical care providers who
treated the veteran for a right knee
disorder since his separation from service
in 1948.  After securing the necessary
release, the RO should attempt to obtain
these records, following the provisions of
38 C.F.R. § 3.159 (1993).

3.  The appellant should be scheduled for a
VA orthopedic examination to determine the
etiology of any right knee pathology.  A
detailed history should be elicited, and
all indicated tests should be performed.
The claims folder must be made available
to and reviewed by the examiner prior to
the examination.  The examiner should
provide an opinion as to whether it is at
least as likely as not that any right knee
pathology, including a "cracked knee," is
attributable to service.

Thereafter, the RO should review the claim.  If the claim is
denied, the veteran and his representative should be issued a
supplemental statement of the case and given an opportunity to
respond.  Then the case should be returned to the Board.

          M. CHEEK
          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) (1993).