The Board remands the claims for service connection for obstructive sleep apnea and bilateral tinnitus as a new VA examination is required to cure pre-decisional duty to assist errors.
The deciding factor: A remand is necessary due to inadequate medical opinions regarding the etiology of the Veteran's conditions, particularly in relation to his service-connected PTSD and noise exposure during military service.
- Claimed conditions
- Obstructive Sleep Apnea, Bilateral Tinnitus
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- April 28, 2025
- Citation
- A25038716
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.
- Denied
The Board denied service connection for various disabilities and denied higher ratings for several service-connected conditions.
- Granted
The Board granted service connection for obstructive sleep apnea as secondary to the Veteran's service-connected psychiatric disorders, lumbar and cervical spine disabilities, bilateral radiculopathy of the upper extremities, and bilateral radiculopathy and neuropathy of the lower extremities.
- Denied
The Board denied a rating in excess of 50 percent for PTSD, finding that the Veteran's symptoms more closely approximated those associated with a 50 percent rating.
- Partly granted
The Board denied a compensable rating for allergic rhinitis, service connection for chronic sinusitis and bilateral tinnitus, granted a 50 percent initial rating for PTSD, and remanded the claims for an increased rating for PTSD and service connection for a somatic disorder.
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