The Board denied service connection for various disabilities, including cervical spine, back, shoulder, elbow, wrist, vertigo, and hypothyroidism, as there was no evidence of an in-service event, injury, illness, or disease related to these disabilities. The claim for a sleep apnea disability was also denied due to the lack of a current diagnosis.
The deciding factor: The Board found that there were no in-service events, injuries, illnesses, or diseases related to the claimed disabilities and that the Veteran did not report any specific events during service that could have given rise to these conditions. Additionally, there was no evidence of a current sleep apnea disability.
- Claimed conditions
- cervical spine disability, back disability, left shoulder disability, right shoulder disability, left elbow disability, right elbow disability, left wrist disability, right wrist disability, vertigo, hypothyroidism, sleep apnea disability
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- April 1, 2025
- Citation
- A25029697
What this means for you
A denial is a starting point, not the end of the road. You can see why this claim fell short — and, if you are still inside the one-year window, the appeal lanes that may remain open to you.
What you can do next
Related decisions
Other Board decisions on a similar condition or argued the same way.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board remands the issue of entitlement to service connection for a back disability due to a duty to assist error, specifically regarding VA's failure to provide the Veteran with a VA examination prior to the rating decision.
- Denied
The Board denied service connection for multiple conditions, including bilateral hearing loss and various musculoskeletal issues, as well as an initial rating in excess of 0 percent for rhinitis. However, the Board granted a 70 percent rating for posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD).
- Denied
The Board denied service connection for a deviated septum and denied compensable ratings for allergic rhinitis, chronic sinusitis, hypothyroidism, and hypertension.
- Partly granted
The Board granted a 20 percent disability rating for left and right lower extremity radiculopathy from April 3, 2023 onward, but denied higher ratings prior to that date. Service connection was also granted for alcohol use disorder as secondary to PTSD with traumatic brain injury.
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