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The Honorable Charles R. Wolle, United States District Judge for the Southern

District of Iowa.

United States Court of Appeals

FOR THE EIGHTH CIRCUIT

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No. 04-1085

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Rebecca A. Lopez, *

*

Appellant, *

* Appeal from the United States

v. * District Court for the 

* Southern District of Iowa.

Jo Anne B. Barnhart, Commissioner *

of Social Security Administration, * [UNPUBLISHED]

*

Appellee. *

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Submitted: June 17, 2004

Filed: August 31, 2004

___________

Before BYE, BOWMAN, and MELLOY, Circuit Judges.

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PER CURIAM.

Rebecca Lopez appeals the decision of the District Court1

 affirming the denial

of social security disability benefits. She sought disability insurance benefits based

on degenerative-disc disease, fibromyalgia, narcolepsy, and sleep apnea. We review

a district court's decision upholding the denial of social security benefits de novo,

Lauer v. Apfel, 245 F.3d 700, 702 (8th Cir. 2001), but our review of the Social

Security Commissioner's final decision is deferential; we review that decision only
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to ensure that it is supported by "substantial evidence in the record as a whole," Estes

v. Barnhart, 275 F.3d 722, 724 (8th Cir. 2002). In the District Court and on appeal,

Lopez urges that the ALJ erred by not crediting the opinion of her treating physician,

Dr. Mahadevia, who considered her to be disabled. We agree that the decision of the

ALJ is supported by substantial evidence and affirm.

In this case, Lopez points to a letter from Dr. Mahadevia attesting to the

substantial limitations her conditions imposed on her and to the doctor's assessment

of her residual functional capacity as supporting her disability claim. Although the

opinion of a treating physician is normally entitled to deference, an ALJ need not

defer to such an opinion when it is not internally consistent or is not supported by

acceptable clinical or diagnostic data. Anderson v. Barnhart, 344 F.3d 809, 813 (8th

Cir. 2003) (quoting Cantrell v. Apfel, 231 F.3d 1104, 1107 (8th Cir. 2000)). The ALJ

determined, and we agree, that Dr. Mahadevia's letter and residual functional capacity

assessment are not internally consistent. The objective medical evidence in the record

strongly suggests that Lopez's condition improved significantly with treatment and

suggests that her daytime sleepiness was well controlled with Ritalin. In short, the

record supports the ALJ's assessment that Lopez could return to her previous

employment. See Patient Notes of Dr. Mahadevia (Sept. 1, 2000) ("She is doing

remarkably well. She is sleeping well, and she feels well rested . . . she is markedly

improved."); Patient Notes of Dr. Mahadevia (Feb. 13, 2001) ("She is doing

remarkably well. She is much more energetic. Her hypersomnolence is markedly

improved except later in the day when she feels much better."); Patient Notes of Dr.

Mahadevia (Mar. 20, 2001) ("She seems to be doing reasonably well. . . . does often

have excessive daytime sleepiness, but with Ritalin she is well controlled."); Patient

Notes of Dr. Mahadevia (Oct. 23, 2001) ("She seems to be progressively

improving . . ."); Patient Notes of Dr. Madaveia (Mar. 22 2002) ("With nasal CPAP

therapy and Ritalin, she is doing remarkably well . . . . her daytime sleepiness is under

control."). Other medical evidence also reinforces the ALJ's conclusion. Dr. Dvorak,

who performed surgery on Lopez to alleviate her sleep apnea reported that Lopez was
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"very pleased she had the surgery. She reports she's breathing much better through

her nose and sleeping much better. She is starting to have dreams again and is

actually losing weight since she's felt so much better." Dr. Dvorak Letter (Feb. 3,

2000). Moreover, even the letter that Lopez points to tends to undermine her

position. In that letter, Dr. Mahadevia notes that "she has been doing reasonably

well" and, with regards to her excessive daytime sleepiness, "she has done clinically

reasonably well with Ritalin." Letter of Dr. Mahadevia (Dec. 10, 2002). While Dr.

Mahadevia noted that Lopez "will continue to have off and on episodes of fatigue,

excessive daytime sleepiness, and cataplexy," id., this prognosis does not entirely

square with his own patient notes and with the other objective medical evidence.

Accordingly, the District Court did not err when it determined that the ALJ's decision

was supported by substantial evidence.

The judgment of the District Court is affirmed. See 8th Cir. R. 47B.

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