Citation Nr: 18159076 Decision Date: 12/18/18 Archive Date: 12/18/18 DOCKET NO. 17 58-819 DATE: December 18, 2018 ORDER Entitlement to service connection for tinnitus is granted. Entitlement to service connection for obstructive sleep apnea is denied. Entitlement to service connection for headaches is denied. FINDINGS OF FACT 1. Resolving reasonable doubt, the Veteran’s tinnitus is etiologically related to military noise exposure. 2. The preponderance of the evidence is against finding that the Veteran has obstructive sleep apnea due to an in-service event, injury, or disease. 3. The preponderance of the evidence is against finding that the Veteran has headaches due to an in-service event, injury, or disease. CONCLUSIONS OF LAW 1. The criteria for service connection for tinnitus have been met. 38 U.S.C. §§ 1110, 1112, 1131, 1154(a), 5103, 5103A, 5107 (2012); 38 C.F.R. §§ 3.102, 3.303, 3.307, 3.309 (2017). 2. The criteria for service connection for obstructive sleep apnea has not been met. 38 U.S.C. §§ 1110, 5107(b); 38 C.F.R. §§ 3.102, 3.303(a). 3. The criteria for service connection for headaches has not been met. 38 U.S.C. §§ 1110, 5107(b); 38 C.F.R. §§ 3.102, 3.303(a). REASONS AND BASES FOR FINDINGS AND CONCLUSIONS The Veteran served on active duty from June 1970 to May 1973. This matter is before the Board of Veterans’ Appeals (Board) on appeal from a July 2014, rating decision of the Winston-Salem, North Carolina, Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) Regional Office (RO). The Veteran died prior to certification of the appeal to the Board, and the RO properly accepted the Veteran’s spouse as his substitute for purposes of processing the appeal to completion. Service Connection 1. Entitlement to service connection for tinnitus The Veteran contended that his tinnitus was attributed to service. His personnel records document that he was a light weapons infantryman. An audiogram from July 2013, documents bilateral sensorineural hearing loss. The Veteran’s duties during service consisted of infantry, mess hall guard, and driving devices. He fired weapons, and did not use any hearing protection. The Veteran complained of recurrent bilateral tinnitus. The Veteran was found to have bilateral hearing loss, and the examiner opined his hearing loss was not related to service. The examiner stated that his tinnitus is at least as likely as not a symptom associated with hearing loss, as tinnitus is known to be a symptom associated with hearing loss. The Veteran was scheduled for another audio examination in June 2014, however, he failed to report. A note in the file states that in June 2014, the Veteran called to request a new appointment as he was ill. In October 2014, he requested a new examination, expressing that he understood the importance of attending any scheduled exam. The Veteran died in July 2015. The Veteran had consistently asserted that he had tinnitus as a result of his time in service. A veteran is competent to testify regarding facts or circumstances that can be observed and described by a layperson. 38 C.F.R. § 3.159(a)(2); see also Layno v. Brown, 6 Vet. App. 465, 471 (1994) (“[C]ompetent testimony is... limited to that which the witness has actually observed, and is within the realm of his personal knowledge”). Although there is no positive opinion of record, the Veteran has conceded noise exposure, and there is competent and credible testimony indicating tinnitus since service. As such, all reasonable doubt is resolved in the Veteran’s favor, and service connection for tinnitus is granted. See 38 U.S.C. § 5107(b); 38 C.F.R. § 3.102. 2. Entitlement to service connection for obstructive sleep apnea 3. Entitlement to service connection for headaches The appellant contends that the Veteran’s headaches and obstructive sleep apnea (OSA) were caused by service. The question for the Board is whether the Veteran had a disability that began during service, or is at least as likely as not related to an in-service injury, event, or disease. The Board concludes that the preponderance of the evidence is against finding that the Veteran’s headaches and OSA are related to an in-service injury, event, or disease. 38 U.S.C. §§ 1110, 1131; Holton v. Shinseki, 557 F.3d 1363, 1366 (Fed. Cir. 2009); 38 C.F.R. § 3.303(a), (d). The service treatment records are negative for any complaints or reports of sleep apnea or headaches. VA treatment records document OSA, with the first mention of OSA being in December 2011. VA treatment records contain no reports of headaches. A private medical record from July 2004, documents complaints of a severe headache. A MRI of the brain was done, and the Veteran was diagnosed with bilateral maxillary frontal sinus disease. Although the appellant believes the Veteran’s OSA and headaches were proximately due to service, she is not competent to provide a nexus opinion in this case. The issue is medically complex, as it requires knowledge of the interaction between multiple organ systems in the body/interpretation of complicated diagnostic medical testing. Jandreau v. Nicholson, 492 F.3d 1372, 1377 n.4 (Fed. Cir. 2007). She is not competent to relate the Veteran’s OSA or headaches to service. There is no probative evidence of record indicating the Veteran had sleep difficulty or headaches during service. The appellant has submitted no evidence or further indication as to why she believes the Veteran’s OSA or headaches were related to service. The service treatment records do not show treatment for OSA, and the first indication of complaints of headaches and OSA, was over thirty years post service. Absent an in-service event, injury, or disease, service connection must be denied. In other words, the most probative evidence of record does not show that the Veteran’s headaches and OSA are directly due to service. H.M. WALKER Veterans Law Judge Board of Veterans’ Appeals ATTORNEY FOR THE BOARD E. Skiouris, Associate Counsel