The Veteran's appeal for service connection for sleep apnea has been withdrawn. Service connection for GERD and migraine/tension headaches, both secondary to PTSD with major depressive disorder, is granted.,Service connection for cervical spine degenerative joint disease, status post anterior fusion, radiculopathy right upper extremity, and right hand tremors, all claimed as secondary to PTSD with major depressive disorder, is remanded.
The deciding factor: The Veteran withdrew her appeal for sleep apnea. Service connection was granted for GERD and migraine/tension headaches due to their relationship to service-connected PTSD.,Service connection for cervical spine issues, radiculopathy, and right hand tremors remains in dispute as the evidence is insufficient to establish a link between these conditions and service.
- Claimed conditions
- Bilateral Hearing Loss, Cervical Spine Degenerative Joint Disease, Status Post Anterior Fusion, Fibromyalgia, Gastroesophageal Reflux Disease (GERD), Genitourinary Disability, claimed as a UTI, Migraine/Tension Headaches, Radiculopathy Right Upper Extremity, Right Hand Tremors, Sleep Apnea
- How they argued it
- Not specified
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- December 10, 2019
- Citation
- 19191862
Veterans Law Judge
Decisions by this judge: 2,084 · Granted: 20% (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 19191862.
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.
- Granted
The Veteran's bilateral hearing loss is granted as service-connected. The claims for alcohol abuse and psychiatric disorder are remanded for additional development, including a VA examination to determine the nature and etiology of these conditions.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board has decided to remand the case due to a need for a new VA examination to assess the current severity of the Veteran's bilateral hearing loss. The issue remains under direct service connection theory.
- Denied
The Board denied service connection for sleep apnea, finding that the evidence did not support a link between the condition and service.
- Denied
The Veteran's hearing loss was rated at 30 percent, the highest non-compensable rating available. The Board found that his hearing loss did not warrant a higher rating based on VA examinations and medical records.
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