Sleep apnea decisions — 2021

The Board has remanded the Veteran's claims for increased ratings and service connection for obstructive sleep apnea due to a lack of adequate medical examination records and insufficient reasoning in previous decisions.

The Board has remanded the case due to insufficient medical opinion regarding whether the Veteran's sleep apnea is caused by his service-connected left knee strain or bronchitis and COPD. The Veteran needs a new VA examination to address this issue.

The Board has remanded the issue of a rating in excess of 30 percent for migraine headaches due to insufficient information regarding the severity and frequency of unmedicated headaches. The Veteran is also being asked to undergo another VA examination to assess his service-connected OSA.

The Board has determined that the Veteran is entitled to an effective date of January 6, 2005 for her TDIU due to service-connected disabilities preventing her from securing or following any substantially gainful occupation since at least October 2004.

The Veteran's appeal for service connection of a psychiatric disability is dismissed. The Board also denied the staged ratings and reduction from 30 to 20 percent for her low back disability.

The Board has granted service connection for gastrointestinal symptoms, tinnitus, and hearing loss related to Gulf War illness. Service connection was denied for chronic headache disability, left leg condition, right leg condition, and sleep apnea.

The Veteran's claim for service connection for PTSD was denied due to lack of an in-service stressor. The claims for bilateral foot and hand numbness and tingling are being remanded as the VA examiner did not provide a nexus opinion.

The Board has denied the Veteran's claim for service connection for obstructive sleep apnea, finding that it is not related to his service-connected traumatic brain injury (TBI). The most probative evidence indicates that the Veteran’s sleep apnea is not caused or aggravated by his TBI.

The Board has remanded the case due to the inextricability of the service connection for PTSD and OSA. The claim for OSA will be reconsidered after adjudication of the PTSD claim.

The Veteran's claim for service connection for obstructive sleep apnea was granted as secondary to his service-connected PTSD and GERD. The claim for a skin disorder was denied.

The Board has granted service connection for sleep apnea, finding that the Veteran's symptoms began during his active duty and have continued since.

The petition to reopen the previously denied claim for service connection for sinusitis is granted.,Service connection for chronic fatigue syndrome (CFS) is denied.

The Veteran's type 2 diabetes mellitus is presumed to have been incurred in service. The Board also granted service connection for the Veteran’s heart disability, progressive supra-nuclear palsy, hypertension, and sleep apnea based on exposure to herbicides during service.

The Board denied service connection for Obstructive Sleep Apnea (OSA) and bilateral knee disorders, finding that the preponderance of evidence did not support a link to service.,For right and left knee disorders, the Board found no evidence linking these conditions to service.

The Board has received additional evidence and the Veteran's representative has requested that this evidence be reviewed by the AOJ/RO. The Board is therefore remanding these matters to comply with the Veteran’s request.

The Board has granted service connection for obstructive sleep apnea, finding that it was caused and aggravated by the Veteran's service-connected disabilities.

The Veteran's service-connected disabilities (depression, hypertension, and sleep apnea) combined to render her unemployable for the period since October 4, 2011. The Board finds that she is entitled to a TDIU on an extraschedular basis.

The Board has remanded the claims for service connection due to incomplete records and the need for additional medical opinions regarding psychiatric disorders, aneurysm status post craniotomy, cognitive deficits and dementia, headaches, and obstructive sleep apnea.

The Veteran's lumbar spine disability is rated at 40 percent prior to December 3, 2008. The Board has remanded the cases for further development and rating consideration.

The Board has decided to remand the case due to insufficient development of evidence regarding the Veteran's respiratory disabilities, specifically his asthma and obstructive sleep apnea.