The Veteran's OSA, right shoulder, cervical spine, and lumbar spine disabilities are found to be aggravated by his service-connected bronchial asthma with COPD. His headaches are related to his cervical spine DDD.
The deciding factor: The VA examiner opined that the Veteran's OSA was aggravated by his service-connected bronchial asthma with COPD. The private chiropractor opinions attributed the right shoulder, cervical spine, and lumbar spine disabilities to a fire truck injury in service. The November 2015 VA examiner found it likely that the Veteran's headaches were related to his cervical spine DDD.
- Claimed conditions
- Obstructive Sleep Apnea (OSA), Right Shoulder Status Post SLAP Tear, AC Joint Arthrosis, AC Joint DJD, Cervical Spine Degenerative Disc Disease (DDD), Lumbar Spine Degenerative Disc Disease (DDD), Headaches
- How they argued it
- Aggravation of a pre-existing condition
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- May 22, 2017
- Citation
- 1717646
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 1717646.
What this means for you
A grant means the Board agreed the veteran was entitled to the benefit. Decisions like this show the kind of evidence and arguments that tend to succeed for claims like it.
What you can do next
Related decisions
Other Board decisions on a similar condition or argued the same way.
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The Board has determined that the claims for service connection for OSA and insomnia must be remanded due to inadequate VA examinations and opinions, as well as a failure to obtain TERA opinions on all relevant exposures.
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The Board has decided to remand the Veteran's claims for an initial rating in excess of 50 percent for obstructive sleep apnea (OSA) and a separate rating for chronic pulmonary embolism due to inadequate VA examinations.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board has denied the Veteran's claims for initial compensable ratings for obstructive sleep apnea and headaches, finding that the evidence does not support a finding of persistent daytime hypersomnolence or other manifestations consistent with a compensable disability rating under the criteria established by Diagnostic Codes. The matter is remanded to obtain additional information from the Veteran regarding his headaches and their impact on his daily life.
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