The Veteran's low back disability is not service connected as it was not incurred or aggravated by service.,The right ankle calcaneal spurs are not service connected as they were not caused by the in-service injury and there is no evidence of continuity of symptomatology since service.,Tinnitus is service connected as it first manifested during active service and is related to noise exposure in service.,Obstructive sleep apnea is service connected as it was incurred during active service due to exposure to smoke, fumes, and exhaust while in service.,The left leg disability is not service connected as there is no evidence of a current diagnosis or chronicity since service.,The right leg disability is not service connected as the primary condition (right ankle calcaneal spurs) is not service connected.
The deciding factor: There is no medical evidence showing that the Veteran's low back disability was incurred in service, and there is no continuity of symptomatology since service.,The right ankle calcaneal spurs were not caused by the in-service injury as they did not manifest until several years after service. There is also no evidence of chronicity or continuity of symptoms since service.,Tinnitus was diagnosed during active service, and it is related to noise exposure in service.,Obstructive sleep apnea was incurred during active service due to exposure to smoke, fumes, and exhaust while in service.,There is no current diagnosis for the left leg disability. The Veteran's symptoms are not chronic or continuous since service.,The right ankle calcaneal spurs were not caused by a service-connected condition as there is no evidence of continuity of symptomatology.
- Claimed conditions
- Low back disability, Right ankle calcaneal spurs (calcaneal spurs), Tinnitus, Obstructive sleep apnea, Left leg disability, Right leg disability
- How they argued it
- Secondary to another service-connected condition
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- November 13, 2018
- Citation
- 18149804
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 18149804.
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Related decisions
Other Board decisions on a similar condition or argued the same way.
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The Board denied service connection for bilateral hearing loss and tinnitus, finding that the Veteran's current conditions are not related to his military service.
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The Board denied the Veteran's claims for service connection for a low back disability and an increased rating for his acquired psychiatric disorder. The Board found that there was no evidence linking the current disabilities to military service.
- Denied
The Veteran's service-connected low back disability alone does not prevent him from securing and following a substantially gainful occupation.
- Denied
The Board denied the veteran's claims for a higher rating for PTSD and dismissed his appeals regarding increased ratings for tinnitus and a right hand disability due to lack of timely filing of Notice of Disagreement.
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