Citation Nr: 18143169 Decision Date: 10/18/18 Archive Date: 10/18/18 DOCKET NO. 16-24 615A DATE: October 18, 2018 ORDER Entitlement to service connection for sleep apnea is granted. FINDING OF FACT Resolving all reasonable doubt in the Veteran’s favor, his obstructive sleep apnea was at least as likely as not incurred during his active military service. CONCLUSION OF LAW The criteria for service connection for obstructive sleep apnea are met. 38 U.S.C. §§ 1110, 1111, 1131, 5107(b); 38 C.F.R. §§ 3.102, 3.303(a). REASONS AND BASES FOR FINDING AND CONCLUSION The Veteran served on active duty from July 1995 to June 2004. This matter comes before the Board of Veterans’ Appeals (Board) on appeal from a January 2015 rating decision of the VA Regional Office (RO) in San Diego. The Board concedes that the Veteran has a current diagnosis for obstructive sleep apnea. The Veteran contends that his sleep apnea was caused by or arose during service. Service connection will be granted if the evidence demonstrates that a current disability resulted from an injury or disease incurred in or aggravated by active service, even if the disability was initially diagnosed after service. 38 U.S.C. §§ 1110, 1131; 38 C.F.R. § 3.303. The Veteran’s service treatment records (STRs) do not reflect any complaints, diagnosis, or treatment of obstructive sleep apnea. However, in his June 2016 Form 9 statement and February 2015 Notice of Disagreement, the Veteran reported suffering from symptoms consistent with sleep apnea while on active duty, including fatigue, difficulty sleeping, and choking and snoring during sleep. The Board notes that the Veteran is competent to testify as to having experienced such symptoms at that time. See Barr v. Nicholson, 21 Vet. App. 303, 307-08 (2007). The Veteran also submitted lay statements in December 2014 from his mother, girlfriend, and active-duty roommate, and an additional statement in January 2015 from his former shipmate. The Veteran’s mother stated the Veteran lived with her intermittently from 1999 to 2001 while he was on active duty, and he suffered from severe snoring and choking in his sleep, which the Veteran had not suffered from prior to service. His girlfriend states that the Veteran suffered from severe snoring and choking in his sleep during the two years they had been dating at the time of her statement. The Veteran’s former roommate reported that the Veteran suffered from severe snoring while they were stationed at Naval Security Group San Diego from 2001 to 2004. Lastly, in his January 2015 lay statement, the Veteran’s former shipmate stated that the Veteran would snore very loudly on and off their ship, especially after a late night or long shift. The Veteran’s VA treatment records reflect that he was diagnosed with severe sleep apnea after a sleep study in February 2015. The Veteran also submitted an April 2017 statement by a family nurse practitioner stating that, based on her review of the Veteran’s medical history (specifically service treatment records), it was more likely than not that the Veteran’s sleep apnea began during military service and went undiagnosed until 2015. Based on her review of the Veteran’s medical history, it was her opinion that he had no sleep problems prior to service. His symptoms were noted to have begun in September 1999. In contrast, during a June 2015 VA examination, the Veteran’s examiner opined that there was no evidence of sleep apnea in service, and therefore it was less likely than not that the Veteran’s sleep apnea was incurred in or caused by service. Considering the above, the Board finds that the evidence is in relative equipoise as to whether the Veteran’s sleep apnea was incurred during his active duty service. The Board accords the nurse practitioner’s medical opinion considerable probative weight, as it was based upon a review of in-service treatment records. Thus, resolving all reasonable doubts in the Veteran’s favor, the Board concludes that he is entitled to service connection for obstructive sleep apnea. See 38 U.S.C. § 5107; Gilbert v. Derwinski, 1 Vet. App. 49 (1990). A. C. MACKENZIE Veterans Law Judge Board of Veterans’ Appeals ATTORNEY FOR THE BOARD Evan Thomas Hicks