The Veteran's acquired psychiatric disorder, to include depression, is granted.,Service connection for tinnitus and bilateral hearing loss are both established. The Veteran also has service-connected obstructive sleep apnea.,Right shoulder disability, right heel spur, and right knee condition (secondary) have been granted.,Service connection for a right knee condition remains pending as it was remanded.
The deciding factor: The VA examiner found that the Veteran's current acquired psychiatric disorder is proximately due to his service-connected disabilities. However, after considering all evidence and resolving all doubts in favor of the Veteran, the Board finds that service connection for an acquired psychiatric disorder is warranted.,Service connection was established based on the Veteran's competent testimony regarding noise exposure during service and continuous symptoms since service. The absence of documented hearing loss while in service does not preclude a finding of service connection.,The Veteran has current diagnoses of obstructive sleep apnea, which began during his military service. The Board found that the evidence is at least in relative balance as to whether the Veteran's current condition is related to service.,Service connection for right knee condition was remanded due to insufficient medical evidence regarding its relationship to service-connected disabilities.
- Claimed conditions
- right shoulder disability, acquired psychiatric disorder (depression), tinnitus, bilateral hearing loss, obstructive sleep apnea, right heel spur, right knee condition
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- January 10, 2023
- Citation
- 23001634
Veterans Law Judge
Decisions by this judge: 945 · Granted: 43% (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 23001634.
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
Related decisions
Other Board decisions on a similar condition or argued the same way.
- Dismissed
The Veteran's appeal for service connection of bilateral hearing loss and a ruptured right ear drum was dismissed due to the death of the Veteran.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Veteran's right shoulder disability and migraines/chronic headaches are remanded for additional development due to insufficient opinions on the etiology of her conditions.
- Denied
The Board found that the Veteran's bilateral hearing loss was noted upon entry into active duty service and did not increase in severity during service. Therefore, it denied his claim for service connection.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board has remanded the claims for service connection for hearing loss, tinnitus, and an acquired psychiatric disorder due to incomplete medical records and need for further examination.
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