The Board has decided that the Veteran's OSA is not service connected on its own, but may be secondary to his service-connected bilateral knee disabilities. The decision is remanded for further examination and opinion regarding whether the knee disabilities caused obesity, which in turn caused the OSA.
The deciding factor: The previous VA opinion did not fully address whether the Veteran's service-connected knee disabilities caused him to become obese, or if obesity was a substantial factor in causing his OSA.
- Claimed conditions
- Obstructive Sleep Apnea (OSA), Bilateral Knee Disabilities
- How they argued it
- Secondary to another service-connected condition
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- March 19, 2020
- Citation
- 20020263
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 20020263.
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.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board has remanded the claims of entitlement to service connection for vertigo and obstructive sleep apnea (OSA) due to a pre-decisional duty to assist error. The Veteran's hearing loss is not rated higher than 10 percent.
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The Board has determined that the claims for service connection for OSA and insomnia must be remanded due to inadequate VA examinations and opinions, as well as a failure to obtain TERA opinions on all relevant exposures.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board has decided to remand the Veteran's claims for an initial rating in excess of 50 percent for obstructive sleep apnea (OSA) and a separate rating for chronic pulmonary embolism due to inadequate VA examinations.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board has remanded the case due to insufficient evidence regarding service connection for an acquired psychiatric disorder, including PTSD. The Veteran's lay statements and medical records are considered in determining whether there is a nexus between current symptoms and service.
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