The Board denied service connection for sleep apnea and COPD, finding that the Veteran's symptoms were not caused or aggravated by his service-connected PTSD. The Veteran's COPD was found to be less likely as not incurred in service due to recurrent bronchitis, which is not considered a chronic condition.
The deciding factor: The medical evidence did not support a diagnosis of COPD and there was no indication that the Veteran had a current respiratory condition.
- Claimed conditions
- sleep apnea, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD)
- How they argued it
- Secondary to another service-connected condition
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- 50%
- Decision date
- February 2, 2018
- Citation
- 1806889
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 1806889.
What this means for you
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What you can do next
Related decisions
Other Board decisions on a similar condition or argued the same way.
- Denied
The Board denied the Veteran's claim for service connection for sleep apnea, finding that there was no evidence of a chronic disease manifesting within one year after service and concluding that the current disability is not related to his in-service deviated septum.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board has remanded the case for additional development regarding the Veteran's claim of service connection for sleep apnea. The Veteran will be provided with a VA examination to determine if his current sleep disorder is related to his military service.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board has decided to remand the issue of service connection for sleep apnea due to insufficient medical opinions and need for further development.
- Denied
The Veteran's respiratory disability, including asthma and COPD, is denied as service connection is not warranted due to the condition being solely attributed to smoking.
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