The Board found that the Veteran's obstructive sleep apnea is not caused or aggravated by his service-connected diabetes mellitus, and thus denied service connection for this condition. The rating for diabetic nephropathy and hypertension was also denied as there were no manifestations of kidney pathology.
The deciding factor: The evidence did not show a direct link between the Veteran's obstructive sleep apnea and his service-connected diabetes mellitus, nor did it demonstrate any aggravation of pre-existing conditions by the diabetes.
- Claimed conditions
- Obstructive Sleep Apnea, Diabetes Mellitus type II
- How they argued it
- Secondary to another service-connected condition
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- June 23, 2010
- Citation
- 1023424
This is a plain-language summary generated by AI from a public Board of Veterans’ Appeals decision. It can contain errors — always verify against the original. Look up the original decision on VA.gov (opens in a new tab) using citation 1023424.
What this means for you
A denial is a starting point, not the end of the road. You can see why this claim fell short — and, if you are still inside the one-year window, the appeal lanes that may remain open to you.
What you can do next
Related decisions
Other Board decisions on a similar condition or argued the same way.
- Granted
The Board granted service connection for obstructive sleep apnea as secondary to the Veteran's service-connected psychiatric disorders, lumbar and cervical spine disabilities, bilateral radiculopathy of the upper extremities, and bilateral radiculopathy and neuropathy of the lower extremities.
- Partly granted
The Veteran's PTSD was granted a 70 percent rating prior to March 7, 2022, while other claims were denied.
- Denied
The Board denied service connection for various disabilities and denied higher ratings for several service-connected conditions.
- Denied
The Board denied a rating in excess of 50 percent for PTSD, finding that the Veteran's symptoms more closely approximated those associated with a 50 percent rating.
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