The Veteran's respiratory disorder and sleep apnea were not incurred or aggravated by service, including exposure to asbestos and lead paint. The Board finds that the preponderance of evidence is against a finding that these conditions are related to his military service.
The deciding factor: The VA examiner found no direct link between the Veteran's current respiratory disorder and in-service exposures, and concluded that it was more likely due to work at a steel mill post-service. The sleep apnea was not linked to any service or exposure.
- Claimed conditions
- Respiratory Disorder, Sleep Disorder (specifically sleep apnea)
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- November 2, 2016
- Citation
- 1642306
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 1642306.
What this means for you
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Related decisions
Other Board decisions on a similar condition or argued the same way.
- Denied
The Board denied initial ratings in excess of the assigned percentages for OSA, hypertension, allergic rhinitis, and irritable colon syndrome. Service connection was also denied for chronic fatigue syndrome and a respiratory disorder.
- Denied
The Board denied an evaluation higher than 50 percent for PTSD and remanded the claim for service connection for a respiratory disorder.
- Partly granted
The veteran's claim for service connection for a traumatic brain injury (TBI) was granted. The claims for respiratory disorder and an earlier effective date for allergic rhinitis were remanded.
- Granted
The Veteran's hypertension, tinnitus, and diabetes mellitus have been granted service connection. However, the initial compensable rating for hypertension has been denied.,Service connection for bilateral hearing loss and a sinus disorder is denied due to lack of evidence meeting VA criteria for these conditions during or approximate to the appeal period.,The Veteran's tinnitus was found to have begun during service and has been continuous since then, granting service connection. Service connection for diabetes mellitus is also granted.,Service connection for bilateral eye disorder, sleep disorder (including insomnia and sleep apnea), headache disorder, thyroid disorder, and respiratory disorder remains pending as remanded by the Board.
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