Anxiety decisions — 2015

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

The Board has determined that the Veteran's psychiatric disorders, including PTSD, are related to his active service and have granted service connection for these conditions.

The Board has determined that the Veteran's PTSD and anxiety disorder are service-connected, with secondary service connection for hypertension and coronary artery disease also granted. Diabetes mellitus type II is not yet addressed due to pending remand.

The Veteran's claim for service connection for an acquired psychiatric disorder, including PTSD and anxiety disorder, was denied as there is no competent diagnosis of a mental disorder.,The Veteran's claim for TDIU benefits was also denied due to the lack of evidence showing that his service-connected disabilities preclude him from maintaining substantially gainful employment.

The Veteran's PTSD and anxiety disorder have been granted a rating of 70 percent, effective March 3, 2011.,PTSD and anxiety disorder are currently productive of total occupational and social impairment.

The Veteran's PTSD is related to his military service and has been granted. The Board finds that the evidence supports a finding that the Veteran's other acquired psychiatric disorders, including generalized anxiety disorder, psychosis, depressive disorder, alcohol dependence, and cannabis dependence are not secondary to or aggravated by his newly service-connected PTSD.

The Board has determined that the Veteran's adjustment disorder with mixed anxiety and depression warrants an effective date of September 17, 2011 for a 30% evaluation.

The Veteran's appeal is being remanded for additional development, including obtaining VA and private treatment records and scheduling a VA psychiatric examination to address the nature and etiology of any diagnosed psychiatric disorder.

The Veteran's appeal concerning the issue of entitlement to service connection for a skin disorder of the upper body and hands has been dismissed as he withdrew his appeal at the January 2015 Board hearing.

The Board has granted the Veteran's claim of entitlement to service connection for an acquired psychiatric disorder, including major depressive disorder and anxiety. The evidence is in relative equipoise as to whether his current psychiatric condition is related to military service.

The Board has reopened the Veteran's claim for service connection for a psychiatric disability, including depression and anxiety disorder. The evidence submitted since the July 2006 rating decision relates to in-service stressors that may have caused his current psychiatric disorders. As such, the claim is granted.

The Board has determined that the Veteran's acquired psychiatric disability, currently diagnosed as anxiety and depression, had its onset during service and grants service connection for this condition.

The Veteran's anxiety disorder has been rated at 50 percent, the highest available rating under Diagnostic Code 9413, due to symptoms including nightmares, intrusive thoughts, irritability, sleep disturbance, and difficulty establishing effective relationships.

The Veteran's appeal was denied for service connection for bilateral hearing loss, PTSD, an acquired mental disorder other than PTSD (claimed as anxiety attacks), OSA, and a higher initial rating for diabetes mellitus. The RO found that the Veteran did not meet the criteria for these conditions.

The Board denied the Veteran's claims for service connection for a cervical spine condition, bilateral hearing loss, an acquired psychiatric disorder (to include depression and anxiety), a seizure disorder, and migraine headaches. The effective date of any future grant of service connection would be determined based on when the application was filed.

The Board has expanded the issue of service connection for any acquired psychiatric disability to include PTSD, depressive disorder, and anxiety. The case is being remanded for a new VA examination to determine if these conditions are related to service.

The Board has granted service connection for migraine headaches and an acquired psychiatric disorder, including dysthymic disorder with anxiety, bipolar disorder, and a personality disorder. The Veteran's current diagnoses are considered to be related to his military service.

The Board has determined that the Veteran's major depressive disorder and anxiety disorder, not otherwise specified, existed prior to service and were aggravated by his military sexual trauma during active duty.

The Veteran's PTSD with depressive disorder and GAD resulted in reduced reliability and productivity, but did not meet the criteria for a higher initial rating of 70% or 100%. The disability was characterized by symptoms such as depressed mood, sleep impairment, short-term memory impairment, impaired judgment, disturbances of motivation and mood, difficulty establishing work and social relationships.

The Board has granted service connection for tinnitus and anxiety/depressive disorder. The issue of a rating in excess of 20 percent for diabetes mellitus remains pending.