Sleep apnea decisions — 2019

The Board has remanded the case due to a lack of a VA examination and because the Veteran's representative contends that his sleep apnea is related to service or secondary to his throat cancer. The Veteran needs to be examined for his sleep apnea, and an opinion must be provided regarding whether his throat cancer caused or aggravated his sleep apnea.

The Board denied the Veteran's claims for an increased rating for seborrheic dermatitis and to reopen his claim of service connection for obstructive sleep apnea, finding that new evidence did not raise a reasonable possibility of substantiating these claims.

The Board has determined that the Veteran's Obstructive Sleep Apnea is related to his service and grants service connection for this condition.

The Veteran's left ear hearing loss is at least as likely as not related to acoustic trauma from his honorable period of service.,VA has a heightened duty to assist the Veteran in developing his claims since government records may have been lost. Relevant medical and personnel records should be obtained.

The Board has remanded the case due to insufficient medical opinions regarding whether the Veteran's obstructive sleep apnea is related to service, including exposure to environmental hazards in Southwest Asia. The VA examiner found that OSA was more likely than not caused by obesity rather than military service or service-connected conditions.

The Board has remanded the cases for further medical opinions to determine if the Veteran's GERD and Obstructive Sleep Apnea are aggravated by his service-connected anxiety disorder.

The Board has granted service connection for obstructive sleep apnea, finding that the Veteran's symptoms of snoring and daytime sleepiness during service are consistent with OSA. The Board also found that there is a causal relationship between the current diagnosis of OSA and his military service.

The Board has granted service connection for Obstructive Sleep Apnea, Movement Disorder, and Head Injury Residuals Other Than Somatization Disorder. The Veteran's current conditions are related to his active service.

The Board has remanded the claims for service connection for several disabilities, including a bilateral elbow disability, bilateral ankle disability, sleep apnea, reflux, and memory loss, all claimed as due to Gulf War Syndrome. Additional evidence is needed to confirm the Veteran's service in the Persian Gulf War, and an examination is required to determine if the memory loss is related to his military service.

The Board denied the Veteran's claim for an earlier effective date for the grant of service connection for sleep apnea, finding that the claim was not filed until August 5, 2016, and thus the effective date is set at that time.

The Board has granted service connection for PTSD and OSA, finding that the Veteran's current diagnoses are etiologically related to his in-service stressors.,Service connection is also granted for OSA as secondary to PTSD.

The Board denied service connection for sleep apnea as there was no evidence of its occurrence during service and the Veteran's current diagnosis is not causally related to his military service.

The Veteran's claim for service connection for obstructive sleep apnea is denied as there is no direct evidence of its onset in service, and the weight of the evidence does not support a finding that it was caused or aggravated by PTSD or due to exposure to herbicide agents during service.

The Veteran's claim of service connection for left shoulder disability is reopened due to the submission of new and material evidence.,Service connection for a left shoulder disability is denied as there is no evidence showing that the condition began during or approximate to the pendency of the claim, nor is it related to an in-service injury or disease.

The Board has granted the Veteran's requests to reopen his service connection claims for major depressive disorder, migraine headaches, sleep apnea, bilateral carpal tunnel syndrome, and low back disability. The appeals are now on their merits.

The Veteran withdrew his appeals of all issues on appeal, including service connection claims for various conditions and disabilities. The Board dismissed the appeal as a result.

The Veteran's headaches, back disability, sleep apnea, and diverticulitis are all granted service connection. The left knee chondromalacia is denied. Service connection for hypertension and a left testicular disorder are also denied.,Service connection for the cervical spine disability was granted with an initial 20% rating prior to July 9, 2018, but no higher.

The Board has denied the Veteran's claims for service connection for a psychiatric disability, sleep disability, and chronic fatigue syndrome. The evidence does not support a finding that these conditions were incurred or aggravated by active service.

The Veteran's obstructive sleep apnea is found to be related to his active service, and the Board has granted service connection for this condition.

The Board has denied service connection for COPD, obstructive sleep apnea, and lumbar spine disability due to lack of evidence. The case is remanded for further examination and opinion.