The Board denied the Veteran's claim for service connection for sleep apnea as secondary to his service-connected pleural lung disease with COPD and pulmonary nodule, right lower lung. The VA examiners concluded that there is no causal link between the Veteran’s service-connected condition and his current sleep apnea.
The deciding factor: The medical opinions provided clear explanations as to why the Veteran's current sleep apnea is not likely related to his service-connected pleural lung disease with COPD and pulmonary nodule, based on the service treatment records, post-service medical history, and the nature of the current disability itself.
- Claimed conditions
- sleep apnea, pleural lung disease with COPD and pulmonary nodule, right lower lung
- How they argued it
- Secondary to another service-connected condition
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- December 5, 2019
- Citation
- 19191476
Veterans Law Judge
Decisions by this judge: 2,017 · Granted: 36% (granted or partly granted, in the vetted decisions on this site)
Judge attribution: 2025 complete; earlier years partial.
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 19191476.
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.
- Dismissed
The Veteran withdrew his appeal regarding the claims for sleep apnea and an increased disability rating for diabetes mellitus, type II.
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