Anxiety Board decisions

The Veteran's anxiety and depression were rated at 30 percent from December 28, 2010 to April 11, 2012; increased to 50 percent from April 12, 2012 until June 16, 2013 when a temporary 100 percent rating was awarded; and finally rated at 70 percent as of September 1, 2013.

The Veteran's claim for service connection for hearing loss in the right ear was denied as there is no current diagnosis of a hearing loss disability. The claims for service connection for PTSD, anxiety and depression, and headaches were not addressed due to their interrelated nature.

The Board has determined that the Veteran's PTSD is secondary to his service-connected skin disability and granted service connection for this condition.

The Board has remanded the case for further development, including verifying the appellant's service in the Hawaii Air National Guard and scheduling a VA psychiatric examination to determine if his current acquired psychiatric disorder is related to any period of active or inactive duty.

The Veteran's generalized anxiety disorder is currently rated at 50 percent, reflecting some occupational and social impairment with reduced reliability and productivity.

The Board has remanded the Veteran's claims for further development and examination.

The Veteran's appeal is being remanded for additional development, including a VA examination to assess the severity of his thoracic and lumbar spine disability. The issue of increased rating for cervical spine disability will also be addressed in a supplemental statement of the case.

The Veteran's claim for service connection for a psychiatric disorder, including depressive disorder and anxiety disorder, is being remanded due to the need for additional medical examination and consideration of new evidence.

The Board denied the Veteran's claims for service connection for an acquired psychiatric disability and a back disability, finding that there was no evidence of in-service injury or disease related to these conditions.

The Board has denied the Veteran's claims for service connection for a psychiatric disorder, low back disability, hernia, gout, and hypertension as there is no current diagnosis of these conditions.

The Veteran's appeal is remanded for further development, including a Social and Industrial Survey to assess his employability due to service-connected disabilities. The issues of entitlement to higher ratings for generalized anxiety disorder and bilateral hearing loss are also addressed.

The Veteran's claims for service connection for PTSD and an acquired psychiatric disorder other than PTSD, to include major depressive disorder, anxiety disorder, and bipolar disorder, were denied as there is no competent evidence of a current diagnosis or in-service event, injury, or disease. The Board found that the Veteran's statements attributing his symptoms to employment, financial problems, family issues, political issues, social stressors, and health problems are not credible.

The Board has remanded the case due to insufficient evidence regarding specific stressful incidents in service that resulted in PTSD. Further development is needed, including obtaining records from the Social Security Administration and any State disability benefits.

The Veteran is seeking to establish service connection for additional psychiatric disabilities other than his PTSD. The Board has determined that further development, including obtaining Social Security records and a new opinion from the VA examiner regarding the aggravation of his acquired psychiatric disorders by his service-connected PTSD, is necessary.

The Veteran's appeal is being remanded for additional development, including obtaining private treatment records and providing a VA examination to determine the nature and etiology of any currently present acquired psychiatric disability.

The Board has granted service connection for major depressive disorder and anxiety disorder, NOS. The Veteran's current psychiatric conditions are found to be directly related to his active service.

The Veteran's adjustment disorder with anxiety and depressed mood has been rated at 30 percent since July 6, 2007. The Board finds that the disability is currently manifested by ongoing symptoms of depression and anxiety, with irritability, panic attacks, chronic sleep disturbance, social withdrawal, and Global Assessment of Functioning (GAF) scores ranging from 50-70, productive of occupational and social impairment with reduced reliability and productivity.

The Veteran's PTSD with adjustment disorder has resulted in reduced reliability and productivity, but not to the extent that would warrant a higher rating.

The Veteran's anxiety disorder is found to be related to his period of active service, and the claim for service connection is granted.

The Board has received notification from the appellant's representative that they wish to withdraw their appeal, leading to its dismissal.