Anxiety decisions — 2020

The Board has granted service connection for tinnitus and has remanded the remaining issues due to a need for further examination and development.

The Board has remanded the case due to inadequate examination and need for additional information regarding military sexual trauma.

The Veteran's claims for service connection for various conditions, including rheumatoid arthritis, right hip synovitis, meralgia paresthetica of the lower extremities, degenerative arthritis with spondylosis of the lumbar spine, and chronic headaches have been granted. The claim for service connection for hearing loss has been denied. The Veteran's claims for service connection for PTSD, alcohol use disorder, and major depression have been denied.

The Board has determined that the Veteran's service-connected disabilities render him unable to secure and follow substantially gainful employment, thus granting his claim for a total disability rating based on individual unemployability.

The Board has remanded the Veteran's claims for a rating greater than 30 percent prior to April 23, 2018 and to a rating greater than 50 percent thereafter for non-specified anxiety disorder due to new evidence indicating worsening symptoms since the last examination in April 2015. The Veteran is also remanded for a TDIU claim as his employment has been impacted by service-connected disabilities.

The Board has denied service connection for PTSD and Anxiety Disorder as there is no current diagnosis of these conditions. The Veteran's in-service symptoms were not diagnosed or treated, and the evidence does not support a finding that he currently suffers from either condition.

The Veteran's claim for service connection for an acquired psychiatric disability is granted, and the appeal is granted to that extent only. The Board finds new and material evidence has been received regarding his anxiety disorder and remands the case for a VA examination.

The Veteran's claims for service connection of acquired psychiatric disorders, athlete's foot, appendectomy scar, and sialadenitis were all denied. The Veteran was granted initial compensable ratings (10%) for athlete's foot, appendectomy scar, and sialadenitis. His claim for a rating in excess of 10 percent for right knee residuals of lateral meniscectomy is being remanded.

The Veteran's acquired psychiatric disorder, including PTSD and anxiety disability, bilateral hearing loss, arthritis due to trauma with joint pain, left shoulder disability, right elbow disability, left elbow disability, right wrist disability, left wrist disability, right ankle disability, and left ankle disability are all granted. The service connection is determined to be direct.

The Board has remanded the case due to insufficient evidence regarding the Veteran's claimed acquired psychiatric disorder, including PTSD. The examiner is requested to determine if the Veteran's mental disorders are related to his military service and specifically whether he has PTSD based on a verified stressor of being in a snowstorm for three days.

The Veteran's appeal for service connection for GERD, PTSD, anxiety disorder, and a temporary total evaluation due to left knee disability was dismissed. The application to reopen claims of service connection for right knee disorder and depression were granted.

The Veteran's tinnitus has been granted service connection. The issues of service connection for PTSD and a thoracolumbar spine disorder have been remanded.

The Board denied reopening the Veteran's claim for service connection of an acquired psychiatric disorder, finding that new and material evidence was not received to support the claim.

The Board has determined that the Veteran's acquired psychiatric disorder, including major depressive disorder, panic disorder with agoraphobia, and anxiety, is at least as likely as not related to his service. Service connection for these conditions is granted.

The Veteran's request to reopen a claim of entitlement to service connection for adjustment disorder with mixed disturbances of emotional conduct (manifested by depression and anxiety) is granted. The Board also remanded several other issues related to the spine disability, including left arm, right arm, left hand, right hand, left foot pain, right foot pain, left leg, and right leg disabilities.

The Board has remanded the case due to incomplete records and the need for a VA psychiatric examination. The Veteran's service connection claim will be reconsidered based on new evidence.

The Veteran's appeal for an increased evaluation of his service-connected adjustment disorder with mixed anxiety and depression is dismissed. The case is remanded for further examination regarding the Veteran's TBI secondary to a head injury, as well as for an examination related to his right ankle disability.

The Board has remanded the case due to an inadequate VA examination, and a new one must be conducted to determine if the Veteran's acquired psychiatric disorder is related to his service.

The Veteran's service connection for an acquired psychiatric disorder, including anxiety disorder, depressive disorder, adjustment disorder, and PTSD, is granted. Service connection for a respiratory/pulmonary disorder is denied.

The Veteran's GAD and depressive disorder are granted at a 100% rating since June 29, 2006. The TDIU claim is denied as the Veteran has other service-connected conditions that prevent him from securing or following a substantially gainful occupation.