Bipolar disorder decisions — 2018

The Board has remanded the claims for asthma and an acquired psychiatric disability due to insufficient examination reports. Additional VA treatment records are needed, including those from the Child and Adolescent Psychiatric Services (CAPS) inpatient program at Mt. Sinai Hospital.

The Veteran's appeal for an increased evaluation in excess of 50 percent disabling for bipolar disorder prior to December 20, 2016 has been dismissed as the Veteran withdrew his appeals.

Your appeal for service connection of bipolar disorder has been dismissed as you have withdrawn your appeal and are satisfied with the disability rating.

An initial rating of 100 percent for bipolar disorder is granted, and the issue of service connection for piriformis of the left lower extremity is remanded.

The Board has determined that the Veteran's current PTSD, anxiety disorder, depressive disorder and bipolar disorder are etiologically related to service. The decision is based on the Veteran's reported in-service stressors and his current psychiatric diagnoses.

The Veteran's acquired psychiatric disorders, including bipolar disorder and depression, are being remanded for further examination and opinion to determine if they are related to his military service.

The Veteran's tension headaches prior to May 18, 2013 were not manifested by characteristic prostrating attacks averaging one in two months over the last several months. The Veteran’s tension headaches are rated by analogy to Diagnostic Code 8100 for migraines. As the preponderance of the evidence is against finding that the Veteran's tension headache symptoms approximated the criteria for a compensable rating, his claim for a compensable rating prior to May 18, 2013 was denied.

Service connection for headaches has been granted. The Veteran's tinnitus is already at the maximum schedular rating.,The Veteran's claims for an evaluation in excess of 10 percent for tinnitus, and effective dates earlier than November 8, 2013, for service connection for tinnitus and hiatal hernia have all been denied. The Veteran has also had his claim for a compensable evaluation for hiatal hernia and residual scars remanded.,The Veteran's claims for service connection for high blood pressure, acquired psychiatric condition (to include bipolar disorder and depression), sleep apnea, and multiple noncompensable disabilities prior to November 8, 2013 have all been remanded.

The Veteran's claim for service connection for an acquired psychiatric disorder, previously characterized as PTSD, has been reopened. The appeal is granted to this extent only. Service connection for the Veteran's sleep disorder and headache disorder are remanded due to need for further examination and opinion.

The Board has determined that the evidence is at least in equipoise regarding whether the Veteran has PTSD and Bipolar Disorder, which are service-connected based on direct service connection.

The Veteran's claim for service connection for an acquired psychiatric disability (bipolar disorder) has been reopened and granted.,Service connection is also granted for sleep apnea, which the Board found was aggravated by her service-connected bipolar disability and asthma. Tinnitus was also found to be related to active service.,The Veteran's claim for a total disability rating due to individual unemployability (TDIU) due to migraine headaches has been granted.

The Veteran's bipolar disorder has been rated at 100 percent since December 2013, and the Board finds that it is permanently disabling. The decision grants a permanent and total disability rating for bipolar disorder.

The Veteran's claim for service connection for bronchial asthma was reopened and granted. Service connection for obstructive sleep apnea is also granted, but the right knee condition, back problems, and psychiatric disorder claims are remanded.

The Veteran's appeal for a higher rating for PTSD and bipolar disorder, as well as his claim for TDIU due to service-connected disabilities, are being remanded. Additional VA treatment records from the Beckley VAMC need to be obtained, and the case should be referred to the Director of Compensation Service for extraschedular consideration of TDIU.

The Board denied service connection for a psychiatric disorder, including psychosis and mixed bipolar disorder, as there was no evidence of in-service incurrence or continuity of symptomatology.

The Veteran's PTSD with bipolar disorder is rated at 50 percent effective November 15, 2017. His service-connected conditions do not meet the criteria for a higher rating.

The Board has granted service connection for an acquired psychiatric disability, including schizoaffective disorder, bipolar disorder, and posttraumatic stress disorder, as it is at least as likely as not that these conditions began during the appellant's military service.

The Board has remanded the case due to inadequate VA examination and need for updated treatment records. The Veteran's bipolar disorder is claimed as a new condition, not related to service.

The Board has reopened the claim of entitlement to service connection for a right shoulder disorder and remanded the issue of service connection for an acquired psychiatric disorder. The Veteran's new and material evidence includes post-service VA and private treatment records, as well as lay statements from the Veteran.