Depression decisions — 2013

The Board has reopened the claim for service connection of an acquired psychiatric condition and granted it, finding that new evidence supports a current diagnosis. The Veteran's conditions are not considered to be related to his military service.

The Veteran's appeal is remanded for a new VA examination to assess the current severity of his service-connected disabilities and whether they render him unable to obtain or retain substantially gainful employment.

The Board has determined that new and material evidence has been received to reopen the Veteran's claims for service connection for PTSD and depression, but the underlying claim remains denied as there is insufficient credible evidence of a verified in-service stressor.

The Veteran's acquired psychiatric disorder, including PTSD and MDD, is as likely as not attributable to events during his active military service.

The Board has determined that the Veteran's current psychiatric disorders, including posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD), are not related to his military service and have denied his claim for service connection.

The Board has determined that a remand is necessary to obtain additional medical opinions and evidence in order to properly adjudicate the Veteran's claim for service connection for depression secondary to his service-connected tinnitus.

The Board denied the appellant's claims of service connection for various conditions, finding that none were incurred or aggravated by military service.

The Board has remanded the case for further development, including obtaining SSA records and additional VA treatment records. The Veteran's TDIU claim is also raised due to his service-connected diabetes mellitus with associated complications.

The Board has determined that new and material evidence has been presented to reopen the Veteran's claim for service connection for a mental disorder, including anxiety and depression. The case is remanded for further development regarding PTSD and other acquired psychiatric disorders.

The Veteran's claims for service connection for an acquired psychiatric disorder, diabetes mellitus type II due to herbicide exposure, and glaucoma as secondary to diabetes are all denied. The Board found no evidence of herbicide exposure in the Republic of Vietnam and thus could not grant presumptive service connection based on Agent Orange exposure. Diabetes was not present during service or within one year after discharge, and there is no medical evidence linking it to service. Glaucoma was also not shown to be related to diabetes mellitus.

The Board has determined that further development is needed to address the Veteran's claim for service connection for depression, including whether it is secondary to his service-connected hypertension.

The Board found that the Veteran's psychiatric disorder, including as secondary to service-connected rheumatic heart disease, did not manifest during or due to service and denied his claim.

The Board has remanded the case for additional development, including obtaining all records reviewed in conjunction with the Veteran's claim and scheduling a VA examination to determine if an acquired psychiatric disability is related to active duty.

The Board has remanded the case for additional development, including verifying stressors and obtaining a VA examination to determine if any diagnosed psychiatric disorders are related to service.

The Veteran's claims for service connection were denied. The Board found no new and material evidence to reopen the claim of an acquired psychiatric disorder, including PTSD. Service connection was also denied for a skin disorder, low back disorder, sleep disorder, stomach disorder, penis deformity, prostate disorder, and heart disease.

The Veteran's service connection claim for PTSD has been granted. The Board also found that the Veteran had other diagnosed psychiatric disorders, including dysthymic and depressive disorder, which are not in dispute as they were already addressed in his original claim.

The Board finds that the Veteran does not have a current diagnosis of PTSD or any other service-connected acquired psychiatric disorder. The VA examiner did not find any stressors sufficient to meet the criteria for a PTSD diagnosis, and the private physician's opinion was outweighed by the VA examiner's findings.

The Board found that the Veteran does not have a currently diagnosed psychiatric disorder for VA compensation purposes, as she has a personality disorder rather than depression. The claim is denied.

The Board denied service connection for depression with obsessive compulsive disorder, finding that the Veteran's OCD was not shown to have had onset during service or be etiologically related to any injury, disease, or event of service origin. The diagnosis of OCD in-service is considered less probative due to lack of supporting records.

The Board found that the Veteran's service records were likely destroyed due to a fire at the National Personnel Records Center. The medical evidence of record shows no diagnosis or treatment for a psychiatric disability, characterized as depression with insomnia, until 2008, which is more than 54 years after his separation from service. Therefore, the Board concluded that there was insufficient evidence to establish a link between the Veteran's current psychiatric condition and his military service.