The Board has remanded the Veteran's claims for service connection for erectile dysfunction and sleep apnea due to a duty to assist error. A VA examination is required to address the nexus of these conditions to service, including any potential herbicide exposure.
The deciding factor: The claim was previously adjudicated without a medical opinion regarding the etiology of the Veteran's erectile dysfunction and sleep apnea, which may be related to service or service-connected PTSD.
- Claimed conditions
- Erectile Dysfunction, Sleep Apnea
- How they argued it
- Not specified
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- December 21, 2020
- Citation
- A20019036
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 A20019036.
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 sleep apnea, finding that the evidence did not support a link between the condition and service.
- Granted
The Board has determined that the Veteran's erectile dysfunction is secondary to his service-connected major depressive disorder, and thus grants service connection for this condition.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board has remanded the Veteran's claim of service connection for erectile dysfunction due to insufficient medical evidence and a need for a VA examination.
- Denied
The claims for PTSD, an acquired psychiatric disorder, memory loss/memory problems, chronic fatigue, sleep difficulties/sleep disturbances, and sleep apnea have been denied. The claim for service connection for residuals of testicular denervation and varicosectomy has been granted.
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