The Board granted service connection for sleep apnea syndrome as secondary to the Veteran's service-connected right ankle sprain, right knee arthritis, and left knee arthritis.
The deciding factor: The evidence is at least in equipoise that the Veteran's obesity, caused by his service-connected disabilities, was a substantial factor in causing his obstructive sleep apnea.
- Claimed conditions
- sleep apnea syndrome
- How they argued it
- Secondary to another service-connected condition
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- November 5, 2025
- Citation
- A25096338
Veterans Law Judge
Decisions by this judge: 945 · Granted: 43% (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 A25096338.
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.
- Denied
The Board denied service connection for sleep apnea syndrome, frequent falls and unbalance, headaches, right shoulder disability, back disability, left hip disability, and left knee disability. The evidence did not support a finding that these conditions began during service or were linked to service.,VA examinations and etiology opinions found no link between the Veteran's current diagnoses of sleep apnea syndrome and frequent falls and unbalance with his military service.
- Granted
The Board has granted the Veteran's claim for service connection for sleep apnea syndrome, finding that new and relevant evidence supports this determination. The Veteran's current diagnosis of sleep apnea is linked to his active duty service.
- Granted
The Veteran's migraines and sleep apnea syndrome are currently rated at the maximum schedular disability rating of 50 percent.,An earlier effective date of March 18, 2020, is granted for the grant of service connection for migraines.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Veteran's claims for service connection for anxiety and sleep apnea syndrome are being remanded due to the need for additional development, including examinations.
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