Anxiety decisions — 2014

The Board denied the Veteran's claims for service connection and increased rating for her acquired psychiatric disability, finding that she did not meet the criteria for an effective date earlier than November 30, 2006. The decision also found no evidence of marked interference with employment or frequent periods of hospitalization to warrant an extraschedular TDIU prior to this date.

The Board has remanded the case for additional development, including a VA psychiatric examination to determine if the Veteran's PTSD is related to his fear of hostile military or terrorist activity. The claim will be reconsidered after this development.

The Veteran's death is being remanded for additional development to obtain medical records and a VA opinion regarding the nature and etiology of his acquired psychiatric disorders, alcohol abuse, and polysubstance abuse.

The Veteran's anxiety disorder, NOS and major depressive disorder are found to have been incurred in service.

The Veteran's appeal is being remanded for additional development, including obtaining updated medical records and scheduling a VA examination to assess the severity of his anxiety disorder. The TDIU claim will also be adjudicated.

The Veteran meets the schedular criteria for TDIU and his service-connected disabilities render him unable to obtain and maintain substantially gainful employment.

The Veteran's appeal is being remanded for additional development to determine the nature and etiology of his claimed conditions, including obesity, hypertension, chest pain, foot fungus, eye disability, and tinnitus. The Veteran will also be provided a statement of the case regarding an increased rating for gout.

The Board has determined that new and material evidence has been received to reopen the claim of service connection for schizophrenia, but it is unclear whether this will result in a grant or denial of service connection due to the complexity of the issues involved.

The Veteran's anxiety disorder, not otherwise specified, with PTSD symptoms was rated at 30 percent from September 21, 2001 to February 9, 2004. The rating is based on the severity of his symptoms which included difficulty sleeping, nightmares, flashbacks, anxiousness, depression, irritability, suspiciousness, short temper, and exaggerated startle response.

The Veteran's claim for service connection for a psychiatric disability, including PTSD and anxiety disorder, is being remanded due to the need for additional development of evidence regarding his alleged stressor event in service.

The Board has granted service connection for Posttraumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) due to a personal assault during military service, finding that the evidence is at least in equipoise and applying the benefit of the doubt in favor of the Veteran.

The Board finds that the Veteran's anxiety and depressive disorders are related to his military service, including experiences during overseas TDY assignments.

The Board finds that the Veteran's currently demonstrated MDD and anxiety are likely caused by his service-connected prostate cancer, status post radiation therapy. The claim for service connection is granted.

The Veteran's anxiety disorder, NOS is found to be etiologically related to his active duty service and granted service connection.

The Board denied the Veteran's claims for service connection for an acquired psychiatric disorder, including PTSD and anxiety, as well as left knee DJD secondary to his service-connected low back disability. The evidence did not support a finding of direct service connection or aggravation.

The Board has granted service connection for an acquired psychiatric disability, including PTSD and anxiety disorder. The Veteran's testimony regarding the alleged military sexual trauma (MST) was found to be credible and supported by other evidence in the file.

The Board dismissed the appeal due to the appellant's death, and no rating decision was made.

The Board found that the Veteran's current psychiatric disabilities, to include anxiety and depression, are not shown to be related to his service. Therefore, service connection for these conditions is denied.

The Board has decided to remand the case for further development, including obtaining an addendum opinion from a VA examiner regarding whether the Veteran meets the DSM-IV criteria for PTSD and if so, whether it is related to his active duty service.

The Board has ordered a remand due to the need for additional evidence and examination, including service treatment records, Social Security Administration records, and VA/privately obtained medical records. The Veteran's claim of service connection for a psychiatric disorder is being returned to the RO/AMC for further review.