Sleep apnea decisions — 2016

The Board denied the Veteran's claims of service connection for a bilateral knee disorder and sleep apnea as secondary to hypertension. The Board found no evidence linking these conditions to service.

The Veteran's appeal is remanded for additional development, including obtaining VA examinations to assess the severity of his service-connected pleural plaques with mild reactive airway disease and any secondary conditions such as gastroesophageal disease (GERD) and obstructive sleep apnea. The appeals for increased rating and service connection will be addressed after these examinations.

The Veteran's obstructive sleep apnea is found to have had its onset during service and the Board grants service connection for this condition.

The Veteran's claims for service connection for residuals of pneumonia and sleep apnea have been denied as there is no evidence that these conditions were incurred or aggravated by military service.,For the remaining issues, including bilateral hearing loss disability and tinnitus, additional medical opinions are needed to determine their etiology.

The Veteran's currently diagnosed obstructive sleep apnea is as likely as not related to his military service, and the Board has granted service connection for this condition.

The Veteran's claim for service connection of cataracts has been reopened. The Board finds new and material evidence to support the reopening of his claim, but does not find that he currently has a heart disorder or any other disability related to service. His sleep apnea is rated at 50 percent, which is the maximum rating available under Diagnostic Code 6847. His narcolepsy is rated at 40 percent and his degenerative disc disease with low back pain is also rated at 40 percent.

The Board has remanded the case due to insufficient evidence on the etiology of the Veteran's sleep apnea, requiring a new examination.

The Veteran's lung, sleep, and skin disorders are not service-connected. The right ear hearing loss disability is rated as non-compensable.

The Veteran's service-connected disabilities do not render him unable to obtain or maintain gainful employment, and the preponderance of evidence is against his claim for TDIU.

The Board has determined that the Veteran's sleep apnea is attributable to his military service and grants service connection for this disability.

The Board has reopened the Veteran's claims for service connection for erectile dysfunction and sleep disorder (claimed as sleep apnea, also claimed as insomnia due to undiagnosed illness), including as secondary to service-connected disabilities. However, these claims are remanded for further development.

The Board denied the Veteran's claim for service connection for a sleep disorder, finding that new evidence did not relate to an unestablished fact necessary to substantiate his claim. The Board also found that the Veteran's OSA was less likely than not related to service.

The Veteran's claim for service connection for sleep apnea is being remanded due to the need for additional development, including obtaining VA treatment records and scheduling a VA examination.

The Veteran's claim for an increased rating for lumbosacral strain was granted, with a 10% rating effective March 11, 2010.,Service connection for benign prostatic hypertrophy was withdrawn from appeal.

The Board denied the Veteran's claims for service connection for diabetes mellitus, and denied his increased rating claims for lumbar spine disability and cervical spine disability. The Veteran was also denied TDIU.

The Veteran's obstructive sleep apnea was not present during service or for many years thereafter, and is not shown to be causally related to any injury, illness, or incident during service, or to a service-connected disability.

The Veteran's appeal regarding the issues of bilateral hearing loss, bilateral wrist disability, sleep apnea, and residuals of meningitis has been withdrawn.,The Veteran's bilateral pes planus clearly and unmistakably pre-existed active duty service and was not incurred or aggravated by such service.

The Veteran's appeal has been withdrawn by the appellant, resulting in the dismissal of his case.

The Board has granted service connection for cervical and lumbosacral spine disabilities, but dismissed the request for an earlier effective date for the right wrist disability.

The Veteran's appeal for service connection for sleep apnea, which was secondary to his service-connected PTSD, has been withdrawn.