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Is It Possible To File For Sleep Apnea

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BklynVet

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BklynVet Apprentice

BklynVet

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Hi,

I was chatting with someone at the DAV and we talked about my transferring my care to the VA. I told him that I was satisfied so far because they discovered I had sleep apnea and I get a machine to help me sleep. By the way, that thing is great. I sleep like a baby and wake up so refreshed.

He asked me if I filed for it and I said 'no'. I am 20% for degenerative joint disease lumbar spine and 10% for right L5 radiculopathy. He said that I could file as secondary for the back problems because it can be tied together. Here's the thing though. I don't have any record of it while I was on active duty. He said that it doesn't matter because I could say that the back problems changed my sleeping position due to pain and discomfort and that caused me to develop sleep apnea. I was discharged from service back in 2003. I was just diagnosed with OSA in February of this year.

Is this true? I don't want to waste my time going through the process only to fail. I did some Google searching and it looks like back problems and sleep apnea are connected but does the VA think so?

Thanks

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71M10 Mentor

71M10

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Yes you can file for Secondary connection for sleep apnea due to back pain/altered biomechanics. That said, you should have a medical opinion that states your OSA was caused by your back condition or makes it worse. If you do not have a physician on record that your SC condition caused the Sleep apnea or makes it worse I don't see much point in filing until you have a medical nexus.

The bigger question here is do you think that your back condition caused your sleep apnea or makes it worse?

Welcome aboard!

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BklynVet Apprentice

BklynVet

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Hi,

To be honest, I never even knew I had sleep apnea. My first wife complained about my snoring and the breathing issues but I never thought anytime about it. My current wife is a respiratory therapist and she said that I needed to get checked out and I did and they said I had sleep apnea.

When I sleep on my stomach or side,i don't snore but I can't sleep that way because I get a 'dip' in my mid section that causes pain. I never slept on my back until I hurt it but that position keeps my body straight and my back doesn't hurt. The only problem is that I snore and have the apnea problems in that position.

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john999 Grand Master

john999

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As I got older and could not exercise due to foot problems and neck and shoulder pain I put on weight. That is a big issue in Apnea. I am signing on at a weight loss clinic to lose as much weight as I can because I did not always have OSA until the last 5 years as I got fatter. I don't use the word "heavy" or "big" because it is fat. I am fat and I have never been fat before. I was a skinny adult until I hit 50 and started to have physical SC problems due to AO. Pain meds and antidepressants can really put the pounds on you. I may just call Dr. Bash and see what he can do. My OSA is bad and I don't do really well with the cpap. I try let me tell you. I have not had surgery but that is next. If I sleep three hours straight it is like the Rapture.

John

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TiredCoastie Proficient

TiredCoastie

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That's excellent advice and experience above.

It is possible to get buddy letters or letters from your wife that discuss when and how you slept...especially if your snoring and gasping for breath in the middle of the night woke someone else up. If you can get something like that from your time on active duty or associated with when the back pain got to be too bad, that would help your cause. Certainly nothing is going to tie this together for you without a solid nexus from a medical specialist who focuses on the problems you have, though. If you're dealing completely inside the VA Medical System now, you could struggle to get the support you need to make the case.

Be wary of what NSOs may tell you. I had one tell me once that I'd be rated 100% in 60-90 days through this new FDC filing....five months later my claim was decided but my overall rating didn't change. I'm sure the DAV rep you spoke with meant well, but good intentions poorly executed have caused more trouble in this world than they solved.

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63SIERRA Veteran

63SIERRA

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Sleep apnea is hard to get connected unless you were documented in service/

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