The Board has granted service connection for sleep apnea as secondary to the Veteran's service-connected back disability, with obesity serving as an intermediate step. The decision is based on a private medical opinion that found the Veteran's sleep apnea was caused by his obesity, which in turn was caused by his service-connected back disability.
The deciding factor: The Board determined that the evidence created a reasonable doubt about whether the Veteran's obesity was a substantial factor in causing his sleep apnea and thus granted service connection on a secondary basis with obesity as an intermediate step.
- Claimed conditions
- Obstructive/central sleep apnea (sleep apnea), lumbar spondylolysis with anterolisthesis of L5, degenerative disc disease L4/5 and broken L5 vertebrae condition (back disability)
- How they argued it
- Secondary to another service-connected condition
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- August 30, 2024
- Citation
- A24051541
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 A24051541.
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.
- Granted
The Board has determined that the Veteran's headaches are at least as likely as not caused by his service-connected traumatic brain injury, and thus grants service connection for this condition.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board has remanded the claims for service connection for hypertension and peripheral neuropathy of the bilateral upper and lower extremities due to insufficient medical opinions regarding their etiology.
- Granted
The Veteran's major depressive disorder is found to be caused by his service-connected low back and radiculopathy disabilities, which prevent him from doing enjoyable activities and daily living tasks.
- Denied
The Board denied the Veteran's claims for service connection for obstructive sleep apnea, peripheral neuropathy of the bilateral upper extremities, and peripheral neuropathy of the bilateral lower extremities, finding that there was no evidence linking these conditions to his active service or any related exposure.
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