Sleep apnea decisions — 2022

The Veteran's left lower extremity femoral nerve radiculopathy is rated at 30% effective October 5, 2021.,Right leg sciatic nerve radiculopathy is rated at 10%, and the Veteran contends for a higher rating. The Board finds no basis to grant a higher rating.

The Board has remanded the Veteran's claims for further development due to inadequate VA examinations and lack of contemporaneous medical records.

The Board has remanded the case due to insufficient medical opinions regarding the Veteran's sleep apnea and its relationship to his service, migraines, and sinusitis.

The Board has remanded the Veteran's claims for additional development due to incomplete records and potential service connection based on Agent Orange exposure.

The Veteran's claims for service connection have been remanded due to the need for additional medical opinions and examinations. The issues include head injuries, psychiatric disorders, hearing loss, sleep apnea, spine problems, nerve damage in limbs, and knee disabilities.

The Veteran's appeals for service connection for sleep apnea, erectile dysfunction (ED), alopecia, pseudofolliculitis barbae, left shoulder osteoarthritis, left elbow tendonitis, neck pain, hypertension (HTN), and rhinitis were dismissed. The Board found that the Veteran withdrew his appeal of these claims before the decision was promulgated.

The Veteran's claims for residuals of tubal ligation surgery and sleep apnea have been denied. The claim for ovarian cysts is being remanded due to the need for additional medical opinions.

The Veteran's back, neck, and sinusitis disabilities are granted service connection. Service connection for OSA is remanded due to insufficient evidence linking it to PTSD or sinusitis. Service connection for a left arm nerve condition is also remanded.

The Veteran's claims for increased ratings for PTSD and Obstructive Sleep Apnea, as well as his requests for earlier effective dates for service connection of PTSD and Chronic Fatigue Syndrome, are being remanded for further development.

The Board has granted service connection for hypertension as due to herbicide exposure. The issues of entitlement to service connection for vertigo, anemia, obstructive sleep apnea, and gastroesophageal reflux disease (GERD) are remanded for additional development.

The Board has denied service connection for respiratory disability and remanded the issue of service connection for obstructive sleep apnea. The Veteran's respiratory disability is not related to an in-service injury, event, or disease, and did not have its onset during service.

The Veteran's gastrointestinal disorder, to include IBS, is not service-connected.,The Veteran's sleep apnea was incurred in service and has been recurrent since then.

The Board has granted the Veteran's claim for service connection for sleep apnea, finding that it is at least as likely as not caused by his service-connected depression.

The Veteran withdrew his appeal for service connection for obstructive sleep apnea as secondary to PTSD with depressed mood and insomnia, citing a recent increase in his P&T rating.

The Veteran's residuals of fractured coccyx (claimed as back injury) were caused by a parachuting injury during active-duty service and granted service connection.,Obstructive sleep apnea was first diagnosed during active-duty service, and the Veteran is granted service connection for this condition. The initial rating in excess of 10 percent for degenerative arthritis of the right knee remains pending as remanded.

The Board has decided to remand the Veteran's claims for additional development due to new evidence being added to the record since the last decision.

The Board has found the VA examinations inadequate and remanded for further development, including scheduling new examinations to address service connection claims for various foot, ankle, knee, and back disabilities.

The Board has granted the Veteran's claim for service connection for obstructive sleep apnea as secondary to his service-connected PTSD with depression. The evidence is in relative equipoise regarding whether the Veteran's OSA was aggravated by his service-connected PTSD.

The Board has decided to remand the case due to insufficient medical opinions regarding whether the Veteran's obstructive sleep apnea is secondary to his service-connected PTSD with alcohol use disorder. The VA must provide an adequate opinion on causation and aggravation.

The Board denied a rating in excess of 40 percent for lumbosacral strain with IVDS from October 2, 2007, as the Veteran's IVDS did not manifest unfavorable ankylosis or result in incapacitating episodes (requiring prescribed bedrest) having a total duration of at least 6 weeks during a period of 12 months.