Anxiety decisions — 2023

The Veteran's service-connected disabilities, including anxiety disorder, tinnitus, chronic pharyngotonsillitis, and bilateral sensorineural hearing loss, have rendered him unable to secure or follow substantially gainful employment. As a result, the Board has granted a TDIU.

The Veteran's service-connected PTSD, depression, panic disorder, and generalized anxiety disorder have prevented him from obtaining and maintaining substantially gainful employment since December 11, 2011.

The Board has remanded the claims for service connection due to insufficient development and need for additional medical opinions regarding the nature and etiology of the Veteran's claimed acquired psychiatric disorder and bilateral knee disability.

The Board has granted service connection for an acquired psychiatric disorder, including insomnia disorder, depressive disorder, and anxiety disorder, as secondary to the Veteran's service-connected sleep apnea.

The Veteran's appeal for higher ratings on his service-connected psychiatric disability, right ear hearing loss, and TDIU is being remanded due to the need for additional development of evidence.

The Board has remanded the claims for service connection for an acquired psychiatric disability, a spine disability, and a heart disability. The Veteran's current diagnoses of depression, anxiety, PTSD, scoliosis, bilateral lumbar radiculopathy, and degenerative disc disease are to be evaluated in detail.

The Board has remanded the claims for service connection due to insufficient evidence and further development is needed. The Veteran's diabetes mellitus claim was denied, while his psychiatric disability, hearing loss, lung disability, hypertension, left leg disability, CVA residuals, left shoulder disability, and right shoulder disability claims are being remanded.

The Veteran's acquired psychiatric disorder, diagnosed as depressive disorder and unspecified anxiety disorder, is granted service connection. The case has been remanded for further action regarding OSA, left ankle, right ankle, and bilateral knee disabilities.

The Board has granted service connection for the Veteran's acquired psychiatric disorders, including PTSD, anxiety, depression, and adjustment disorder, on a direct basis due to in-service trauma.

The Board has decided to remand the case due to insufficient information regarding the onset and nature of the Veteran's psychiatric disorder, specifically whether it pre-existed service or was aggravated by service. The Veteran will be asked to provide additional medical records and an expert opinion will be sought.

The Veteran's initial claim for a higher rating for left knee ITBS was granted, with a separate 10% rating assigned for instability. Service connection for an anxiety disorder and remand for service connection claims related to heel spurs, low back disability, and chronic headaches were also addressed.

The Board has decided to remand the Veteran's claims for an anxiety disorder and left knee disability due to insufficient evidence, including a need for further examinations.

The Veteran's claims for service connection for sleep apnea and anxiety are remanded due to the need for medical opinions regarding their etiology.

The Board denied service connection for PTSD because the appellant failed to appear for a scheduled examination without good cause, and there is no persuasive evidence of a current diagnosis of PTSD in conformance with DSM-IV or DSM-5 criteria.

The Board has decided to remand the case due to insufficient evidence regarding the Veteran's in-service emotional instability and its relation to his current psychiatric condition, as well as whether his conscientious objector request constitutes an in-service stressor.

The Board has remanded the case due to incomplete medical records and the need for additional opinions regarding whether a pre-existing psychiatric disorder was aggravated by service.

The Veteran's anxiety disorder is rated at 70 percent from December 18, 2019 to April 11, 2022. The Board also granted a TDIU for the period prior to April 10, 2019.

The Veteran's service connection claim for an acquired psychiatric condition, including Generalized Anxiety Disorder, Major Depressive Disorder, and PTSD, was denied. The right and left knee patellar subluxation and malalignment were granted a 20% rating.

The Board denied service connection for anxiety disorder and sleep apnea, but granted service connection for degenerative disc disease. The Veteran's back condition is related to an injury during a period of INACDUTRA.

The Veteran's appeal for a higher disability rating for her specified anxiety disorder was dismissed because she withdrew the appeal in writing.