The Board denied higher initial ratings for left and right wrist tenosynovitis but granted service connection for obstructive sleep apnea.
The deciding factor: The evidence did not support a finding of ankylosis or its functional equivalent, while the Veteran's lay statements supported a direct link between his in-service symptoms and current sleep apnea, leading to a grant of service connection.
- Claimed conditions
- left wrist tenosynovitis, obstructive sleep apnea (sleep apnea), right wrist tenosynovitis
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- 10%
- Decision date
- May 19, 2025
- Citation
- A25044735
Veterans Law Judge
Decisions by this judge: 2,604 · Granted: 65% (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 A25044735.
What this means for you
A partial grant means some issues were granted while others were denied or remanded — common in multi-issue claims. Look at which issues went which way, and how each was argued.
What you can do next
Related decisions
Other Board decisions on a similar condition or argued the same way.
- Granted
The Board has granted service connection for left and right wrist tenosynovitis, finding that the Veteran's current conditions were caused by her military service.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board has remanded the Veteran's claims for service connection and evaluation of obstructive sleep apnea and asbestosis with COPD due to duty to assist errors, inadequate examinations, and other procedural issues.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board has remanded the Veteran's claims for obstructive sleep apnea, left hip pain, and right foot pain due to potential errors in pre-decisional duty to assist. The Veteran is presumed sound at the time of her entrance into active service, so any pre-existing conditions must be disregarded. An addendum opinion is needed regarding whether these conditions are related to service or service-connected conditions.
- Granted
The Board has determined that the Veteran's current sleep apnea disability is at least as likely as not caused by his service-connected chronic sinusitis, and thus grants entitlement to service connection for sleep apnea as secondary to chronic sinusitis.
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