Sleep apnea decisions — 2008

The Board granted a 40 percent evaluation for the veteran's service-connected lumbosacral strain, effective from December 17, 2007. The rating is based on severe limitation of motion of the lumbar spine.

The Board has granted a 40 percent rating for the service-connected lumbosacral strain with degenerative joint disease, effective from December 31, 2003.

The veteran's visual acuity is not a disease for VA compensation benefits.,Service connection for headaches and residuals of an eye injury was denied in April 1977, and no new material evidence has been received since then. The claim remains denied.

The Board denied the veteran's claims for service connection for sleep apnea, a compensable rating for bilateral hearing loss, and a rating in excess of 30 percent for PTSD. The preponderance of evidence did not support these claims.

The Board denied the veteran's claims for increased ratings for his degenerative joint disease of the cervical and lumbosacral spines, finding that the evidence did not support a higher rating under VA's rating criteria.

The Board found that the veteran's arthritis of the lumbosacral spine was not present in service or manifested for many years thereafter, and is not shown to be otherwise related to service. The preponderance of the evidence is against a finding that the veteran's arthritis of the lumbosacral spine was caused or worsened by his service-connected residuals of a left knee injury with a postoperative total knee arthroplasty.

The Board denied the veteran's claims for service connection for colon cancer, obesity and tussic coughing with associated hernia, and sleep apnea, all of which were claimed as due to exposure to radiation and herbicides. The Board found that there was no evidence linking these conditions to service or to exposure to ionizing or non-ionizing radiation or to an herbicide agent during service.

The Board has remanded the case for further development, including obtaining VA treatment records and providing notice compliant with VCAA requirements.

The veteran's low back disability, characterized by forward flexion of the thoracolumbar spine to no more than 70 degrees and mild incomplete paralysis of the sciatic nerves, does not meet the criteria for a rating in excess of 60 percent.

The veteran's service-connected PTSD and obstructive sleep apnea have been rated appropriately, with the TDIU claim being granted.

The Board has denied the veteran's claims for service connection for conversion disorder, fibromyalgia, reflex sympathetic dystrophy, left hip disorder, and lumbosacral disorder as secondary to his service-connected left knee disability.

The Board has determined that the veteran's sleep apnea was not incurred or aggravated in service and is not secondary to PTSD. Therefore, the claim for service connection for sleep apnea as secondary to PTSD is denied.

The Board has granted the veteran's claim for an initial rating of 60 percent for service-connected degenerative disc disease of the lumbosacral spine, without deduction for preexisting impairment.

The Board has granted a 40 percent rating for the veteran's lumbosacral strain, which is the maximum schedular rating available under DC 5237.

The veteran's claims for an initial compensable evaluation for bilateral hearing loss and service connection for PTSD were denied. The claim to reopen a previously denied claim of service connection for narcolepsy was granted, but the claim to reopen a previously denied claim of service connection for lumbosacral strain with degenerative joint disease was not reopened.

The Board found that the submitted evidence does not relate to unestablished facts necessary to substantiate the claim of service connection for a chronic sleep disorder diagnosed as sleep apnea, and thus denied reopening of the claim.

The Board has determined that additional development is needed to properly adjudicate the veteran's claims for increased evaluations for lumbosacral strain and muscular degeneration, left thigh. The case will be returned to the Board after completion of this development.

The veteran's claim for service connection for hypertension has been granted, with a current evaluation of 10 percent. The claims for sleep apnea and depression and personality disorder have been reopened but not substantiated on the merits.

The veteran's claim for a higher rating for his service-connected chronic lumbosacral strain was denied, as the evidence did not show that his disability warranted an evaluation greater than 20 percent. The tinnitus claim was also denied due to lack of evidence linking it to service.

The veteran's claims for increased ratings and service connection were dismissed due to untimely Substantive Appeals.