BVA9500289 
DOCKET NO.  93-11 386     )       DATE
          )
          )

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

THE ISSUE

Entitlement to an evaluation in excess of 10 percent for
degenerative arthritis of the cervical spine.

REPRESENTATION

Appellant represented by: The American Legion

WITNESS AT HEARING ON APPEAL

Appellant

ATTORNEY FOR THE BOARD

Jeffrey J. Schueler, Associate Counsel
REMAND

The veteran served on active duty from February 1958 to May 1980,
with four years of prior active service.

To ensure that the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) has met
its duty to assist the appellant in developing the facts
pertinent to the claim, the case is REMANDED to the regional
office (RO) for the following development:

1.  The RO should request that the veteran
supply the names and addresses of any
individuals or treatment facilities that
have treated him for his cervical spine
disability since October 1992, and the
dates of such treatment.  After receiving
proper authorization from the veteran, if
necessary, the RO should obtain copies of
those records and associate them with the
claims folder.

2.  The veteran should be afforded VA
orthopedic and neurologic examinations to
determine the nature and severity of all
disorders of the cervical spine.  The
claims folder should be made available to
the examiners for review before the
examinations.  The examinations should be
conducted in accordance with the procedures
outlined in the VA's Physician's Guide for
Disability Evaluation Examinations (1985).
All indicated studies should be
accomplished, and the orthopedic examiner
should be specifically requested to
determine the range of motion in degrees of
the cervical spine.  Each examiner should
be asked to offer an opinion as to any
etiological relationship between the
veteran's service-
connected arthritis of the cervical spine
and any other disorder of the cervical
spine found on examination.

3.  After the development requested above
has been completed to the extent possible,
the RO should again review the claim, and
adjudicate the issue of service connection
for any other disorder of the cervical
spine found on examination, other than
arthritis.  If any benefit sought on
appeal, for which a notice of disagreement
has been filed, remains denied, the
appellant and representative should be
furnished a supplemental statement of the
case and given the opportunity to respond
thereto.

Thereafter, the case should be returned to the Board, if in
order.  The Board intimates no opinion as to the ultimate outcome
of this case.  The appellant need take no action until otherwise
notified.

          WILLIAM J. REDDY
          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).