How Is Sleep Apnea Related To Peoples Service Connected

Sleep apnea comes in different forms, simply the most mutual blazon with veterans is Obstructive Sleep Apnea. If you have this condition, it causes the throat muscles to relax while sleeping. Your airway narrows and closes, leading to pauses in the animate cycle. These pauses tin can happen several times an hour when the apnea is astringent.

Here are some common symptoms of sleep apnea:

Snoring
Breathing stops
Waking up gasping for air
Dry mouth
Morning headaches
Daytime drowsiness

Contrary to the myth, sleep apnea does non need to be diagnosed while on active duty. Merely think near our veterans from older eras. Medical professionals did non have the medical capabilities to perform sleep study testing when they served.

How Can Sleep Apnea be Filed?

If yous were diagnosed with this condition while in the war machine, you have a direct forrard shot for service connection. However, most of the time, sleep apnea is a secondary claim.

Veterans with deviated septums can have clear cases for a secondary sleep apnea claim. But most veterans are non service-connected for this sinus condition.

Instead, the leading crusade of sleep apnea is weight gain. Weight gain can be tied to several different weather. If you are already service-continued for your knees or your back, you lot are likely not as active as y'all once were. Hence, the weight gain.

The same can be said about service-connected mental health conditions. Many Veterans suffering from emotional distress overeat and lack the motivation to work out.

Therefore, sleep apnea can be filed secondary to either a musculoskeletal condition with weight proceeds or a mental wellness condition with weight gain.

Do I Need a CPAP Auto to exist Service-Continued?

You lot do not have to be prescribed a CPAP motorcar to be service-connected for sleep apnea. Still, if you apply ane, it does provide yous with a college rating. The VA uses two options for rating nigh slumber apnea claims. If you utilise a CPAP car, then this should warrant a 50% rating. Without a CPAP machine, the VA assigns a thirty% rating.

Here's what the 38CFR lists for slumber apnea:

6847 Sleep Apnea Syndromes (Obstructive, Central, Mixed):
Chronic respiratory failure with carbon dioxide retention or cor pulmonale, or; requires tracheostomy	100
Requires use of breathing aid device such as continuous airway pressure (CPAP) machine	fifty
Persistent twenty-four hour period-time hypersomnolence	30
Asymptomatic but with documented sleep disorder breathing	0

Secondary Claims to Sleep Apnea

Once sleep apnea is service-continued, this opens the door for you to file other secondary claims you may want to make. Sleep apnea can be your link or nexus for filing claims for:

Headaches
GERD
Erectile Dysfunction
Diabetes
Nocturia
Eye Conditions

Conclusion

Slumber apnea is a high-value claim in the VA globe of ratings. Not only does the VA provide bounty, but once you receive a service-connection for it, it provides a way to get other disabilities to service-continued.

Strategic Veteran would similar to help y'all sort out what you may be able to claim and the best manner to go about information technology. We're Veterans, just similar y'all, who've learned how to navigate within the VA system. We offer costless resources and expertise to empower all Veterans. Give us a call at 800-477-9027 to encounter if we tin can help you.