The Board has granted service connection for lumbar spine disabilities, left achilles tendonitis, bilateral foot disabilities, sleep apnea, and GERD as secondary to the Veteran's service-connected knee disabilities.
The deciding factor: The VA examinations and private medical opinions provided a strong nexus between the Veteran’s service-connected knee disabilities and his diagnosed lumbar spine disabilities, left Achilles tendonitis, bilateral foot disabilities, sleep apnea, and GERD.
- Claimed conditions
- lumbar spine disabilities (including lumbosacral strain and degenerative arthritis of the spine), left achilles tendonitis, bilateral foot disabilities (including pes planus and plantar fasciitis), sleep apnea, gastroesophageal reflux disease (GERD)
- How they argued it
- Secondary to another service-connected condition
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- April 29, 2019
- Citation
- 19132957
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.
- Dismissed
The Veteran withdrew his appeals for service connection for gastroesophageal reflux disease (GERD) and pernicious anemia, and the Board dismissed both appeals.
- Denied
The Board denied service connection for various conditions, including prostate cancer and related disabilities, urinary incontinence, sleep apnea, hypertension, varicose veins, lumbar spine disability, hip arthritis, shoulder arthritis, ankle arthritis, knee strain, knee replacement, and hand arthritis. The only condition granted was a 10 percent rating for a fracture of the right proximal first metacarpal.
- Denied
The Board denied the Veteran's claim for service connection for sleep apnea as there is no evidence of an in-service injury or disease, and no competent evidence linking the condition to service.
- Partly granted
The Board granted service connection for asthma and remanded claims for insomnia and sleep apnea. Other conditions were denied.
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