The Veteran's respiratory symptoms, including shortness of breath/dyspnea, are due to an undiagnosed illness. The Veteran's sleep apnea is not related to his service and the evidence does not support a finding that it was caused by exposure to environmental hazards. Service connection for diverticulitis is remanded for further examination.
The deciding factor: The VA examiner found no evidence of a known clinical diagnosis for the Veteran’s respiratory symptoms, thus granting service connection based on an undiagnosed illness. The sleep apnea claim was denied as it did not meet the criteria for presumptive service connection due to exposure in the Gulf War. Service connection for diverticulitis is remanded as there are conflicting opinions regarding its onset and relationship to medications.
- Claimed conditions
- respiratory disability, sleep apnea, diverticulitis
- How they argued it
- Not specified
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- December 12, 2019
- Citation
- 19193030
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 19193030.
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
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- 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.
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- Denied
The Board denied service connection for multiple conditions, including bilateral hearing loss and various musculoskeletal issues, as well as an initial rating in excess of 0 percent for rhinitis. However, the Board granted a 70 percent rating for posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD).
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