The Board has granted service connection for obstructive sleep apnea (OSA) as secondary to the Veteran's service-connected acquired psychiatric disorder, including depressive disorder. The decision is based on evidence in relative equipoise concerning whether OSA is caused and/or aggravated by his service-connected condition.
The deciding factor: The opinion from Dr. M.B., who concluded that it was at least as likely as not that the Veteran's acquired psychiatric disorder, to include depressive disorder, caused his OSA and permanently aggravated it, outweighs the opinions against the claim from VA examiners.
- Claimed conditions
- Obstructive Sleep Apnea (OSA), Depressive Disorder
- How they argued it
- Secondary to another service-connected condition
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- February 9, 2023
- Citation
- 23008739
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 23008739.
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 for PTSD has been dismissed as the claim was granted and effective from February 22, 2023.
- 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.
- Remanded (sent back)
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.
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