The Board remands the issues of service connection for bilateral hearing loss, sleep apnea, and higher ratings for lumbar strain, right knee instability, right knee osteoarthritis, removal of cartilage of the right knee, and total disability rating based on individual unemployability (TDIU) to obtain additional evidence.
The deciding factor: Remand is necessary to obtain private medical records and new examination opinions regarding the potential link between the Veteran's service-connected Ehlers-Danlos syndrome and his sleep apnea, as well as to address the impact of EDS on his lumbar spine and right knee disabilities.
- Claimed conditions
- Bilateral hearing loss, Sleep apnea, Lumbar strain, Right knee instability, Right knee osteoarthritis, Removal of cartilage of the right knee, Total disability rating based on individual unemployability (TDIU)
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- October 2, 2025
- Citation
- 25012408
Veterans Law Judge
Decisions by this judge: 828 · Granted: 42% (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 25012408.
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.
- Granted
The Veteran's claim for a low back disorder was reopened, and his claims for increased ratings of bilateral knee instability were granted. His hearing loss claim was denied.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board has remanded the Veteran's claims for sleep apnea and acquired psychiatric disorder (including PTSD) due to insufficient evidence of record. The Veteran is required to undergo VA examinations to determine if his conditions are related to service.
- Granted
The Board has granted effective dates of July 10, 2024 for service connection for PTSD, lumbar strain, and left lower extremity radiculopathy.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Veteran's appeals of the initial ratings for his service-connected chronic cough and bilateral hearing loss are remanded due to procedural errors in the evidentiary record.
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