The Board has remanded the Veteran's claims for service connection due to insufficient medical opinions regarding the relationship between his sleep disorder and tinnitus, as well as the etiology of his left hand disorders. The Veteran will need additional examinations to address these issues.
The deciding factor: The previous VA examination opinions were inadequate in addressing causation and aggravation prongs required for secondary service connection claims.
- Claimed conditions
- Obstructive sleep apnea, Degenerative arthritis of the left hand with tenosynovitis of the left thumb and left fourth finger (left hand disorder)
- How they argued it
- Secondary to another service-connected condition
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- July 9, 2021
- Citation
- 21041416
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 21041416.
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 for service connection due to a duty to assist error, specifically regarding whether the Veteran's current conditions are aggravated by his service-connected DDD of the lumbosacral spine. The AOJ is required to obtain new medical opinions addressing this issue.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board has denied the Veteran's claims for initial compensable ratings for obstructive sleep apnea and headaches, finding that the evidence does not support a finding of persistent daytime hypersomnolence or other manifestations consistent with a compensable disability rating under the criteria established by Diagnostic Codes. The matter is remanded to obtain additional information from the Veteran regarding his headaches and their impact on his daily life.
- Granted
The Board has granted the Veteran's claim for service connection of obstructive sleep apnea as secondary to his service-connected residuals of left foot 5th metatarsal fracture.
- Granted
The Veteran's claim for an earlier effective date for service connection of obstructive sleep apnea has been granted, with the effective date set at June 25, 2019.
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