Sleep apnea decisions — 2024

The Veteran's claims for service connection for PTSD and OSA were granted with effective dates of October 17, 2007.

The Board has denied service connection for headaches, residuals of a traumatic brain injury (TBI), calcium deficiency, hyperparathyroidism, and sleep apnea as there is no current diagnosis or evidence linking these conditions to service.

The AOJ failed to issue a Summary of the Case for the March 2020 decision granting service connection for sleep apnea and assigning an initial 50 percent rating, effective June 23, 2014. The appellant is seeking eligibility for direct payment of attorney fees based on past-due benefits awarded in this decision.

The Veteran withdrew his appeal of the service connection for sleep apnea, and thus the case is dismissed.

The Board has dismissed all issues related to earlier effective dates for service connection due to the death of the Appellant.

Service connection is granted for COPD, omphalocele, and sleep apnea. The right ear hearing loss claim is remanded due to a lack of proper consideration in the initial decision.

The Board has determined that new and relevant evidence was received to readjudicate the claim of service connection for sleep apnea. However, the AOJ did not substantially consider the merits of the underlying claim in the decision on appeal. The case must be remanded for AOJ adjudication with consideration of the merits of the claim in the first instance.

The Veteran's appeal for service connection for obstructive sleep apnea is remanded due to inadequate VA opinions and the need for further development, including a Toxic Exposure Risk Activity examination.

The Board denied the Veteran's claim for service connection for positional sleep apnea as secondary to his service-connected posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) due to conflicting medical opinions and lack of evidence showing worsening functionality.

The Board has remanded the claims for service connection due to a duty to assist error in obtaining complete service medical records, including from the United States Military Academy and Walter Reed Army Medical Center. Additional VA opinions are needed based on all available evidence.

The Veteran's claims for service connection of a back condition and plantar fasciitis as secondary to her service-connected bilateral pes planus are being remanded due to the need for additional examinations.,An examination is required to determine if the Veteran's lumbosacral strain and plantar fasciitis are proximately due to or caused by her service-connected bilateral pes planus, and whether any aggravation of these conditions can be attributed to the service-connected condition.

The Veteran's lumbosacral strain was restored to a 20 percent rating effective July 16, 2014. An initial 40 percent rating from September 30, 2013 and continuing thereafter for lumbosacral strain is granted.

The Board has dismissed all service connection claims due to the appellant's death.

The Veteran withdrew his appeal regarding whether new and relevant evidence had been received to readjudicate the claim of obstructive sleep apnea. As a result, the Board dismissed this issue.

The Veteran's claim for service connection for a lumbar spine disability was denied multiple times before being granted effective from March 22, 2021. The effective date is set at this new determination based on the evidence of record as of that date.

The Veteran's claims for right shoulder and right knee disabilities were granted with an effective date of September 4, 2020. The Board is remanding the issues of service connection for sleep apnea (secondary to psychiatric disability) and lumbar spine disability.,The Veteran has not provided a clear indication that he believes his lumbar spine disability is related to service.

The Board dismissed the appeal for higher ratings of service-connected low back disability as it was a ministerial implementation of a prior decision.

The Board has reopened the claims for sleep apnea, bilateral eye disability, bilateral hearing loss, chronic sinusitis, and left foot injury due to new evidence. The claim for service connection for right ear hearing loss is denied.

The Board has denied service connection for hypertension and a lumbosacral spine disability, finding that the Veteran's conditions did not begin during or as a result of his military service.

The Board has granted service connection for tinnitus and remanded the claims of service connection for eczema, GERD, tension headaches, lumbar spine strain, ED, and OSA.