The Board remands the claims for a disability rating in excess of 30 percent for major depressive disorder, service connection for obstructive sleep apnea, and entitlement to a total disability rating based on individual unemployability due to service-connected disabilities for further development.
The deciding factor: Further medical evidence is needed to determine the current severity of the Veteran's major depressive disorder and whether his service-connected MDD caused or aggravated his obesity, which in turn may have contributed to his obstructive sleep apnea.
- Claimed conditions
- Major Depressive Disorder (MDD), Obstructive Sleep Apnea (OSA)
- How they argued it
- Not specified
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- January 5, 2024
- Citation
- 24000960
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.
- Partly granted
The Board granted service connection for obstructive sleep apnea, left knee disability, and right knee disability. The claims for urinary frequency disability and residuals of a cholecystectomy were denied.
- Partly granted
The Board denied an initial increased rating for diabetes mellitus type II and remanded the claims for service connection for obstructive sleep apnea, right shoulder strain with acromioclavicular joint osteoarthritis and tendinitis, cervical spine spondylosis, left knee degenerative arthritis, right knee degenerative arthritis, and thoracolumbar scoliosis and lumbar spine degenerative changes.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board remands the claim for an acquired psychiatric disorder, to include MDD, as secondary to service-connected disabilities due to a duty to assist error.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board remands the claim for service connection of obstructive sleep apnea as it requires further development and evidence.
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