The Veteran's appeal is remanded for further examination and opinion regarding his claims of service connection for obstructive sleep apnea, bilateral upper extremity peripheral neuropathy, and bilateral lower extremity peripheral neuropathy. The AOJ must attempt to corroborate the Veteran's exposure to napalm, white phosphorus, and other chemical agents.
The deciding factor: The most recent examinations are over five years old and the Veteran has since reported worsening symptoms for his service-connected PTSD with alcohol abuse disorder.
- Claimed conditions
- Obstructive Sleep Apnea, Bilateral Upper Extremity Peripheral Neuropathy, Bilateral Lower Extremity Peripheral Neuropathy
- How they argued it
- Secondary to another service-connected condition
- Exposure basis
- Burn pits / airborne hazards
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- June 18, 2019
- Citation
- 19146937
What this means for you
A remand is not a loss. The Board sent the case back for more development — often a new exam or missing records — before making a final decision. Many remands later end in a grant, and the decision spells out exactly what the Board wanted to see.
What you can do next
Related decisions
Other Board decisions on a similar condition or argued the same way.
- Denied
The Board denied service connection for various disabilities and denied higher ratings for several service-connected conditions.
- 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.
- 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.
- Partly granted
The appeal for entitlement to service connection for obstructive sleep apnea was granted, while other appeals were dismissed as untimely and remanded for further action on essential tremors.
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