Sleep apnea Board decisions

The Board granted service connection for obstructive sleep apnea as secondary to the Veteran's service-connected cervical spine disability and direct service connection for tinnitus. The claims for shin splints, right leg; shin splints, left leg; muscle pain, right arm; muscle pain, left arm; and ulnar nerve sensory loss, right hand were denied.

The Veteran's claim for service connection for PTSD was denied as there is no evidence of a current diagnosis. The claims for service connection for pes planus of the right foot, degenerative joint disease of the right knee, left chronic knee disability, and degenerative joint disease of the lumbosacral spine were remanded for further development.

The Board finds that the Veteran's obstructive sleep apnea did occur during active service and grants service connection for this condition.

The Board denied service connection for glaucoma, residuals of a stroke, sleep apnea, and circulatory disorder of the legs. The initial rating for left thoracic radiculopathy was also denied.

The Board denied the veteran's claims for a rating in excess of 40 percent for lumbosacral strain and entitlement to a total disability rating based on individual unemployability (TDIU) due to service-connected disabilities.

The Veteran's skin disorder and bilateral hip bursitis were granted service connection. The Veteran was also granted a 30 percent disability rating for asthma.

The Board denied the veteran's claims for service connection for right knee strain, left knee strain, and degenerative joint disease of the lumbosacral spine as secondary to his service-connected bilateral heel spur disabilities.

The Veteran's degenerative disc disease and degenerative joint disease of the lumbosacral spine with left hip pain does not warrant a disability rating in excess of 10 percent, but he is granted a separate 10 percent rating for an objective neurological abnormality based on mild impairment of the right lower extremity.

The Veteran's claims for an increased rating for lumbosacral strain and service connection for a psychiatric disorder are being remanded for further development.

The Veteran's service-connected disabilities, including lumbosacral strain, bilateral foot callosities with warts, hiatal hernia, and post-traumatic headaches, did not meet the criteria for higher ratings during the relevant periods.

The Board denied service connection for a sinus disability, sleep apnea, and an increased rating for left knee degenerative joint disease. The initial rating for PTSD was also denied.

The Veteran's lumbosacral strain is rated at 10 percent, as the evidence shows localized tenderness and intermittent flare-ups that limit work performance.

The appeal is remanded for further development and adjudication of the Veteran's claims.

The veteran's lumbosacral strain did not meet the criteria for a rating in excess of 20 percent from September 26, 2003 to October 27, 2006 and did not meet the criteria for a rating in excess of 40 percent from October 28, 2006.

The claim for service connection for bilateral hearing loss was reopened, but the claims for service connection for residuals of shell fragment wound of the right thigh, residuals of mononucleosis, hepatitis, scar of the right middle finger, and scar of the right great toe were not reopened. The claims for service connection for a left ankle disability, sleep apnea, and temporomandibular joint disability were denied.

The appeal is being remanded to the RO for further development and adjudication of the service connection claims.

The Board denied the Veteran's claim for service connection for residuals of removal of liposarcoma of the right thigh, as there was no evidence that he had service in Vietnam and his condition was not related to his active service.

The Veteran's service-connected degenerative disc disease of the lumbosacral spine is not shown to be productive of limitation of forward flexion of the thoracolumbar spine to 30 degrees or less, ankylosis in the thoracolumbar spine, incapacitating episodes, or additional neurological impairment (aside from radiculopathy of the left lower extremity, rated 10 percent).

The Board denied service connection for hypertension, a heart disorder, sleep apnea, bilateral hearing loss, and tinnitus as there was no evidence of these conditions in service or within one year after discharge, and no competent medical evidence linking them to the Veteran's period of service or any service-connected disability.

The Board denied an initial rating in excess of 20 percent for lumbosacral strain with degenerative joint disease, as the Veteran's disability did not more nearly approximate severe limitation of motion or other criteria necessary to warrant a higher rating.