BVA9504540 
DOCKET NO.  89-44 472     )       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 low back disorder.

REPRESENTATION

Appellant represented by: Paralyzed Veterans of America,
Inc.

WITNESS AT HEARING ON APPEAL

The veteran

ATTORNEY FOR THE BOARD

J. T. Hutcheson, Associate Counsel

REMAND

The veteran had active military service from December 1943 to
February 1946.  This matter came before the Board of Veterans'
Appeals (hereinafter "the Board") on appeal from a February 1989
rating decision of the St. Petersburg, Florida Regional Office
(hereinafter "the RO") which denied, in pertinent part, increased
disability evaluations for the veteran's service-connected
residuals of a mid-third amputation of the right leg and gunshot
wound residuals of the right thigh and the right knee.  In July
1989, the RO determined that new and material evidence had not
been submitted to reopen the veteran's claim of entitlement to
service connection for a low back disorder secondary to his
service-connected below the knee amputation of the right leg.  In
July 1990, the Board denied service connection for a low back
disorder secondary to the veteran's service-connected below the
knee amputation of the right leg.

In February 1993, the United States Court of Veterans Appeals
(hereinafter "the Court") vacated the Board's July 1990 decision
and remanded the veteran's appeal to the Board for readjudication
as set forth in the Appellee's Motion for Remand.  The Motion for
Remand was directed solely to the issue of whether new and
material evidence had been submitted to reopen the veteran's
claim of entitlement to service connection for a low back
disorder secondary to his service-connected below the knee right
leg amputation.  In September 1993, the Board remanded the
veteran's claim to the RO for additional action.  In November
1993, the RO determined that new and material evidence had been
submitted to reopen the veteran's claim for service connection
and denied service connection for a low back disorder secondary
to the veteran's service-connected below the knee right leg
amputation.  In August 1994, the Board requested an independent
medical expert's opinion as to the etiology of the veteran's low
back disorder.  In October 1994, the requested opinion was
incorporated into the record.  The veteran has been represented
throughout this appeal by the Paralyzed Veterans of America, Inc.

The veteran asserts in his September 1991 brief to the Court
and written presentations to the Board that the RO erred in
denying service connection for a low back disorder as he
manifested "a generalized and systemic" arthritic disorder to
a compensable degree within one year of service separation.
He contends that he initially manifested a generalized
arthritic disorder affecting the right knee in 1947;
subsequently incurred arthritis in several other major
joints; and ultimately developed osteoarthritis and
degenerative disc disease of the lumbar spine.  In reviewing
the record, the Board observes that a January 1947 Department
of Veterans Affairs (hereinafter "VA") X-ray study revealed
that the veteran suffered from arthritis of the right knee.
Subsequent VA and private clinical documentation conveys that
the veteran has been shown to exhibit arthritis of a number
of joints including the cervical spine, the lumbar spine, the
shoulders, the hips, the left ankle and the left foot.  The
veteran's entitlement to service connection for a generalized
arthritic disorder affecting multiple joints including the
spine has not been formally evaluated and it is inextricably
intertwined with the current issue on appeal which pertains
to the low back.  Given these facts, the Board concludes that
additional action is necessary prior to final appellate
resolution of the veteran's claim.  Accordingly, this case is
REMANDED for the following action:

1.  The RO should schedule the veteran for
a VA orthopedic examination in order to
determine the current nature and severity
of his arthritis.  The examination should
be conducted in accordance with the
Physician's Guide to Disability Evaluation
Examinations.  All indicated tests and
studies should be accomplished and the
findings then reported in detail.  The
examiner should express an opinion as to
whether the veteran suffers from a
generalized arthritic disorder and, if so,
what joints are affected by the disability.
The claims folder should be made available
to the examiner prior to the examination.

2.  The RO should then formally evaluated
the veteran's entitlement to service
connection for a generalized arthritic
disorder affecting multiple joints
including the spine.

When the requested action has been completed, and if his claim
continues to be denied, the veteran should be afforded a
reasonable period of time in which to respond to a supplemental
statement of the case.  Thereafter, subject to current appellate
procedures, the case should be returned to the Board for further
appellate consideration if appropriate.  The veteran need not
take any action unless he is further informed.  The purpose of
this REMAND is to allow for further development of the record and
due process of law.  No inference should be drawn from it
regarding the final disposition of the veteran's claim.

          E. W. SEERY
          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 is appealable to the Court.  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).