Denied Sleep Apnea Claim, Looking For New Angle

[bfd2100red]

I was denied OSA based solely on itself and just yesterday I was denied again of OSA secondary to Anxiety w/ Panic Disorder (50%).
The VA totally dismissed the Army buddy statements and my psychologist thinks apnea only happen to fat people (6' 210lbs), but I haven’t talked to my psychiatrist yet...

I was diagnosed by the VA with OSA in Jan 2013 and have been denied twice now. (Seperated active duty 2010)

Does anyone have a game plan that I could use going forward? Doctors I should get statements from?

The VA's rationale for denile:

...your service treatment records fail to show any complaints, treatment or diagnosis of OSA while on active duty.

Lay statements are credible reports, but not credible medical evidence that your OSA was incurred while in the service or that the current diagnosis is related to your military service or service connected disabilities.

A VA sleep study determine on January 9th 2013 you participated in a sleep study and diagnosed with OSA. These records fail to relate to your OSA to your military service or service connected anxiety disorder.

The anxious state is a conscious state, when motor tone is also present and obstruction of the airway as described does not occur. OSA is apparent on,y when the patient is deeply asleep and motor tone is lost, a non-anxious state. Additionally anxiety cannot influence or aggravate the soft tissue of the hypopharynx as seen I'm OSA

[Navy04]

Great Advice given above bud. I was denied sleep apnea last year when I was medically retired from the Navy. Only because I had a sleep study at a Civilian Clinic, where I had to sleep there. I sleep on my stomach so the Nurse had to keep rolling me over, and I was tangling the wires up, which made the Sleep Study inconclusive. So in the next few weeks the VA is going to mail me a new Electronic Device that I attach around my stomach that only has one wire for two nights, then I mail it back to them for the results. Good Luck and keep trying bud, remember the Govt wants us to give up, so their numbers go down

[USMC_HVEQ]

Navy04,

i know you do your homework on your case. In my case, before I was medically retired (PTSD & both shoulders) from the USMC in 07, I mentioned several times on exit physicals that I may have sleep apnea. I was told by multiple people, civiliian and military that my snoring was extremely loud. Granted I'm not a sleep doctor, but even back in 07, I had an idea something wasnt right besides the PTSD causing sleep issues. I had complained numerous times, I felt awful and never rested. I think in my case too many issues overlapped and they just didnt want to deal with it, they just pushed it along. It took me repeatedly complaining to the VA from 2006-2010 until I finally got a sleep study. I really was hoping I didnt have it. I just wanted to rule it out. I was diagnosed with OSA in 2010 and issued a CPAP and 10.0 pressure setting, I'm currently at 13.0 as of 2013. I had a few at home sleep studies for a Study, if that makes sense. They never gave me the results, which aggrevated me, since I would like to include them in my appeal. My appeal has just been sitting for over 3 yrs. I just had been granted TDIU in April and found P&T, so I'm at a loss if I should still pursue my OSA. Now I dont know where to proceed.

I'm sorry for hijacking your thread and inserting so much my stuff then a reply.

VA needs to connect the dots unless we got OSA in service, so a doctor needs to give a IME/IMO that says your OSA is as likely or not related or secondary to another condition. If it is mental, then what about the mental has aggrevated the OSA that went undiagnosed? The IME/IMO doc needs to cite relevant examples, since most of these raters just like to deny, deny, deny....I was thinking about my own situation as saying my OSA is 2nd to my service connected PTSD, due to weight gain. On my exit physical and med boards (TDRL then PDRL), said obesity, but it was uncompensated....

[vern2]

If you have hypertension this may be an angle, especially if this was diagnosed in service.

Vern2

[USMC_HVEQ]

Vern, you think SC-HTN can get you connected for OSA? I'm service connected HTN (10%), take lisinopril. I now have acquired DM2 as of last Feb 2013 and taking Metformin. Clearly I'm a mess....

[Pete53]

The best angle is to find a Doc who will review your records, Since you have buddy symptoms see if you can get an independent medical opinion who will look at your diagnosis and your beddy statements and give a medical opinion that links to your service.

Don't give up just link the OSA to your service. It does not have to be a military erspm just someone who knows about snoring and sleep disturbance while you were in service.

Good Luck

[Veldrina]

Hey all....don't bother trying to relate it to a mental disorder. Sleep apnea has an organic origin, not mental like insomnia. What you COULD try is to see if any medication could be causing the apnea. I have also been seeing a new trend re obesity being related to PTSD, in whicgh case the apnea could then be secondary to the PTSD via obesity being caused by PTSD. It's a stretch, but better than nothing. Until Obesity becomes a service connectable condition on its own, it will be difficult.