The Board denied the Veteran's service connection claims for sleep apnea syndrome, chronic left shoulder strain with laxity, muscle and joint pain of hands, and short term memory loss due to lack of evidence linking these conditions to his military service.
The deciding factor: The VA examiners found no direct link between the Veteran's current diagnoses and his active duty service.
- Claimed conditions
- sleep apnea syndrome, chronic left shoulder strain with laxity, undiagnosed illness or medically unexplained chronic multisymptom illness (manifested by muscle and joint pain of hands), undiagnosed illness or medically unexplained chronic multisymptom illness (manifested by short term memory loss)
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating
- Not verified here — check the original decision
- Decision date
- November 7, 2011
- Citation
- 1141341
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. Read the original VA decision (opens in a new tab) using citation 1141341.
What this means for you
A final Board denial may be appealed to the U.S. Court of Appeals for Veterans Claims, generally within 120 days of the Board mailing date. A Supplemental Claim with new and relevant evidence is a separate option. Another Higher-Level Review of the Board decision is not available. Check your own notice: this historical decision does not set your deadline.
What you can do next
Use your own notice and decision stage. A remanded issue is not a final court-appealable denial. VA review guidance and CAVC filing instructions (U.S. federal; reviewed October 7, 2026).
Related decisions
Other Board decisions on a similar condition or argued the same way.
- Whole decision: Denied
The Board denied service connection for sleep apnea syndrome, frequent falls and unbalance, headaches, right shoulder disability, back disability, left hip disability, and left knee disability. The evidence did not support a finding that these conditions began during service or were linked to service.,VA examinations and etiology opinions found no link between the Veteran's current diagnoses of sleep apnea syndrome and frequent falls and unbalance with his military service.
- Whole decision: Granted
The Board has granted the Veteran's claim for service connection for sleep apnea syndrome, finding that new and relevant evidence supports this determination. The Veteran's current diagnosis of sleep apnea is linked to his active duty service.
- Whole decision: Granted
The Veteran's migraines and sleep apnea syndrome are currently rated at the maximum schedular disability rating of 50 percent.,An earlier effective date of March 18, 2020, is granted for the grant of service connection for migraines.
- Whole decision: Remanded (sent back)
The Veteran's claims for service connection for anxiety and sleep apnea syndrome are being remanded due to the need for additional development, including examinations.
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