Anxiety decisions — 2024

The Veteran's appeals for higher ratings and earlier effective dates have been denied. The Board found that the evidence did not support a finding of service connection for hearing loss or disability of the cervical spine, and denied all other claims.

The Board has granted service connection for tinnitus but remanded the other issues due to incomplete evidence.

The Veteran's bilateral hearing loss and tinnitus are granted service connection as they were likely caused by noise exposure during service, with reasonable doubt resolved in his favor.,Service connection for an acquired psychiatric disorder (including PTSD, Generalized Anxiety Disorder, and Other Specified Trauma- and Stressor-Related Disorder with Bipolar Disorder) is also granted based on the Veteran's reported stressor of witnessing a plane crash at Pope Air Force Base.

The Veteran's claims for service connection for Non-Hodgkin's lymphoma and Chronic Lymphocytic Leukemia have been readjudicated due to new evidence. Service connection is granted for both conditions.,The Veteran's claims for service connection for an acquired psychiatric disorder, including PTSD, depression, anxiety, and adjustment disorder, as well as vertigo, are remanded for further evaluation.

The Board has decided to remand the case due to a duty-to-assist error, and will need to provide an additional VA examination to determine if any current psychiatric disorder is related to service or his service-connected tinnitus.

The Veteran's unspecified anxiety disorder is rated at 70 percent, the highest available rating under the General Rating Formula for Mental Disorders. The appeal is denied as his symptoms do not meet or approximate the criteria for a higher rating.

The Board has determined that the VA examination and opinion regarding the Veteran's psychiatric disorder are inadequate, and therefore remanded for further clarification and corroboration of in-service stressors. Additionally, a new VA examination is needed to address the etiology of the Veteran's left eye disorder.

The Board has remanded the claims for service connection due to incomplete records and a need for further medical examination. The Veteran's right-shoulder pain may have started during active duty, while his acquired psychiatric condition (including PTSD, depression, and anxiety) may be related to in-service traumatic events.

The Veteran's claim for an earlier effective date for the addition of his spouse to his VA disability compensation is denied. The earliest possible effective date has already been assigned based on the one-year period following the October 29, 2019 rating decision.

The Board has determined that the VA examination conducted in February 2020 was inadequate for addressing the Veteran's claims of service connection for depression and anxiety. Therefore, a new VA examination is required to determine if these conditions are related to his military service.

The Veteran's adjustment disorder with mixed anxiety and depressed mood has resulted in total occupational and social impairment, warranting a 100% disability rating for the entire period on appeal.

The Veteran's claims for service connection are being remanded due to the need to obtain additional records and provide appropriate VA examinations.

The Board has granted service connection for an acquired psychiatric disorder, including anxiety, depression, and a panic disorder. The Veteran's panic disorder is proximately due to his service-connected elbow and knee disabilities.

The Board denied service connection for PTSD because the evidence did not show a current disability, and found that the Veteran's symptoms were better explained by GAD.

The Board has granted an effective date of January 12, 2010 for the grant of service connection for PTSD. The Veteran's claim was reopened due to new and material VA treatment records received within a year of the March 2010 rating decision.

The Board has dismissed the Veteran's claims for an effective date prior to June 2, 2010 for the award of a 70 percent rating for generalized anxiety disorder and denied his claim for an earlier effective date for TDIU.

The Board has denied the Veteran's claims for service connection for anxiety and bilateral lower extremity peripheral neuropathy due to a lack of current diagnoses prior to his filing of the claim. The appeal is remanded as there are errors in the duty to assist, particularly regarding the need for VA examinations and obtaining relevant medical records.

The Veteran's service-connected major depressive disorder with recurrent mild anxiety prevents him from securing or following substantially gainful employment, and the claim for TDIU is granted.

The Veteran's left knee degenerative joint disease is granted as service connected.,Major depression (claimed as anxiety and insomnia) is also granted as secondary to the left knee disability.

The Veteran's claim for an earlier effective date for the award of a TDIU rating is denied as there was no prior informal, formal, or inferred claim for TDIU. The increase in disability occurred more than one year before the April 30, 2020 application.