Anxiety decisions — 2008

The Board has determined that the veteran's claimed acquired psychiatric disorder, including anxiety and depressive disorders, as well as PTSD, is not service-connected due to a lack of verified in-service stressors. The claim for service connection is therefore denied.

The Board has found that the veteran's major depressive and anxiety disorders had their onset in service, granting service connection for these conditions. The TDIU claim is also granted.

The Board found that the veteran's current neurological findings to include tremors and ataxia were not related to service, and his psychiatric disorders are not related to service or a service-connected disability. Therefore, service connection for these conditions was denied.

The Board has granted the veteran's request to reopen his claim for service connection for a psychological disorder, finding that new and material evidence supports this claim. The Board also found that the veteran's anxiety disorder is related to his active military service.

The Board denied service connection for a psychiatric disorder, including PTSD and anxiety disorder, as well as arthritis of the right knee. The claim for bilateral hearing loss was also denied, but new evidence received since the May 1985 rating decision reopened the previously denied claim.

The Board has reopened the veteran's claims of service connection for anxiety disorder, hearing loss, and sinusitis. However, it found that there is no evidence linking these conditions to his military service. The claim for PTSD was also denied.

The veteran's generalized anxiety disorder is currently rated at 70 percent disabling, effective May 21, 2007. The disability causes significant occupational and social impairment.

The Board finds that the veteran's death was not caused by his service-connected Generalized Anxiety Disorder, and thus denies the claim for service connection for the cause of death.

From March 5, 2003, to April 12, 2006, the veteran's psychiatric disorder was productive of reduced reliability and productivity due to symptoms such as flattened affect, panic attacks more than once a week, difficulty understanding complex commands, impairment of short- and long-term memory, impaired judgment, and disturbances of motivation and mood.,Since April 13, 2006, the veteran's psychiatric disorder has been characterized by deficiencies in most areas due to symptoms such as suicidal ideation, obsessional rituals, speech intermittently illogical or irrelevant, near-continuous panic or depression affecting ability to function independently, impaired impulse control, spatial disorientation, neglect of personal appearance and hygiene, difficulty adapting to stressful circumstances, and inability to establish effective relationships.

The Board has determined that the veteran's service-connected anxiety reaction with PTSD features warrants a higher 100 percent rating due to his inability to work.

The veteran is seeking service connection for ear and jaw pain (TMJ dysfunction) and anxiety and depression, which he contends are related to his service-connected hearing loss and tinnitus. The case has been remanded due to the need to obtain additional medical records from the Social Security Administration.

The VA determined that the veteran's current psychiatric disabilities, including depression, were not incurred in or aggravated by his military service.

The Board has remanded the case to consider new evidence and readjudicate issues related to service connection, ratings for psychiatric disorders, and gastrointestinal disorders.

The Board has determined that the appellant's current disorders of the knees and generalized anxiety disorder are not related to his active or inactive duty for training, but granted service connection for a generalized anxiety disorder based on evidence linking it to his active duty for training.

The Board found no evidence of a psychiatric disability during service and no medical nexus linking the current condition to military service. The claim for service connection is denied.

The veteran's PTSD has been rated at 30 percent since July 2, 2003. The VA examinations and treatment records indicate that the veteran experiences mild to moderate symptoms of depression, anxiety, and sleep disturbances, but his overall occupational and social functioning is not significantly impaired.

The Board found no evidence linking the veteran's current acquired psychiatric disorders to his military service, and denied his claim for service connection.

The Board denied service connection for an acquired psychiatric disorder, including post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), finding that the veteran's anxiety disorder was not shown to have been caused by any in-service event.

The veteran's service-connected residuals of a head trauma with an amnesic disorder, psychotic disorder, depressive disorder and anxiety disorder are currently rated at 70 percent. The Board has granted entitlement to TDIU based on these disabilities.

The Board has remanded the case for additional development, including a VA psychiatric examination to determine if the veteran's current psychiatric disorder is causally related to his period of active service spanning March 2003 to March 2004 or any incident thereof.