Sleep apnea decisions — 2021

The Board has determined that the Veteran's obstructive sleep apnea is at least as likely as not aggravated by his service-connected PTSD, and thus grants service connection for this condition on a secondary basis.

The Board has decided to remand the case for further development, including obtaining additional medical opinions regarding the Veteran's sleep apnea and its relationship to his service-connected PTSD.

Service connection is granted for a left knee disability. Service connection is remanded for sleep apnea.

The Veteran's service-connected disabilities have rendered him unable to secure and maintain substantially gainful employment from July 30, 2008, to December 4, 2014. The Board finds that the evidence is in equipoise as to whether his service-connected conditions alone preclude him from obtaining and maintaining such employment.

The Board has determined that another remand is required for the claims of service connection for sleep apnea and a cardiac disability, to include hypertrophic cardiomyopathy. The Veteran's statements regarding his symptoms in service and the presence of right axis deviation during service are considered. A new opinion is needed from an examiner to address the etiology of the Veteran's sleep apnea and whether it was proximately due or aggravated by his service-connected deviated nasal septum, as well as its relation to obesity caused by his service-connected spine and lower extremity disabilities. The claim for service connection for hypertrophic cardiomyopathy is also remanded for a new opinion addressing its relationship to right axis deviation noted during service.

The Board has decided to remand the case due to insufficient medical opinion regarding whether the Veteran's sleep apnea is aggravated by his service-connected sinus residuals.

The Board has denied the Veteran's claims for service connection for benign paroxysmal positional vertigo (BPPV), obstructive sleep apnea (OSA), and skin cancer, as there is no evidence to support a link between these conditions and his military service or any service-connected disabilities.,Specifically, the Board found that BPPV and OSA are not related to his military service or any service-connected disabilities. The Veteran's skin cancer was also denied because it did not begin during active service.

The Board has remanded the claims for service connection for sleep apnea, hypertension, and vertigo as they are inextricably intertwined with the issue of service connection for sleep apnea. The Veteran is to be scheduled for VA examinations to determine if his conditions are related to service or secondary to sleep apnea.

The Board has determined that the original claim for service connection for sleep apnea should be reconsidered due to a pre-decisional error, and thus remanded.

The Board has determined that new and relevant evidence has been received sufficient to warrant readjudication of the Veteran's service connection claims for prostate cancer, PTSD, and sleep apnea. The claims are being remanded due to procedural errors in obtaining necessary medical opinions.

The Veteran's appeal is remanded to adjudicate the issue of entitlement to a TDIU from August 21, 2008, to February 24, 2012, including on an extraschedular basis.

The Veteran's appeal is remanded for a new VA examination to assess the current severity of his lumbosacral strain and whether he qualifies for TDIU.

The Board has granted service connection for obstructive sleep apnea and remanded the claim for heart disability due to insufficient evidence in previous VA opinions.

The Board has remanded the Veteran's claims for service connection for sleep apnea and diabetes mellitus type II due to additional development being necessary, including obtaining medical opinions.

The Veteran's claim for service connection for obstructive sleep apnea as secondary to his service-connected nasal septum deviation, status post nasal septum correction, was granted. His claim for service connection for diabetes mellitus type II is remanded.

The Board has decided that the Veteran's sleep apnea is not service-connected on a direct basis, but remanded for further examination and opinion regarding whether it is secondary to his service-connected PTSD.

The Board denied service connection for left and right foot disorders as well as obstructive sleep apnea, finding that the evidence did not show a relationship between these conditions and military service.

The Board has granted service connection for tinnitus. The cases of thyroid disease, bladder cancer, cervical spine disability, sleep apnea, and bilateral hearing loss are remanded.

The Veteran's appeal for service connection for sleep apnea as secondary to his PTSD is dismissed due to the death of the appellant.

The Board denied service connection for an acquired psychiatric disorder, sleep apnea, and erectile dysfunction. However, it granted service connection for headaches (secondary to hypertension and tinnitus) and bilateral hearing loss. The Veteran's level of hearing loss did not meet the criteria for a disability rating higher than 10 percent.