The Veteran's sleep apnea is related to service, and the Board finds that reasonable doubt should be resolved in his favor.,There is no direct evidence linking the Veteran's allergic rhinitis to service. However, the examiner opined that it is at least as likely as not (50 percent probability) that the condition was caused by or aggravated by sleep apnea.
The deciding factor: The Board found that the Veteran's current diagnosis of obstructive sleep apnea is related to his service due to symptoms he reported during service and post-service, including loud snoring and labored breathing while sleeping. The examiner opined that these symptoms could have started many years before the current diagnosis.
- Claimed conditions
- Obstructive Sleep Apnea, Allergic Rhinitis, Refractive Error and Mild Dry Eyes
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- January 17, 2018
- Citation
- 1803046
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 1803046.
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.
- 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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