Depression decisions — 2015

The Board has reopened the Veteran's claim for service connection for PTSD, depression, and bipolar disorder due to new evidence submitted. However, the issue of whether these conditions are related to service remains pending as it is unclear if there was a personal assault stressor or other in-service event that could support a finding of service connection.

The Veteran's PTSD with anxiety and depression resulted in occupational and social impairment, warranting a 30 percent evaluation effective December 6, 2011.

The Veteran seeks service connection for an acquired psychiatric disorder, claimed as secondary to his service-connected back disability. The Board has determined that a remand is necessary to obtain a proper medical opinion regarding the etiology of any diagnosed psychiatric condition and whether it is related to his service-connected back disability.

The Board has determined that the Veteran's major depressive disorder is etiologically related to his non-combat experiences during active duty service, and thus grants service connection for this condition.

The Veteran's PTSD with depression is rated at 50 percent, effective July 1, 2010. The rating reflects symptoms of reduced reliability and productivity due to symptoms such as flattened affect, panic attacks more than once a week, difficulty understanding complex commands, impaired judgment, and disturbances of motivation and mood.

The Board has remanded the case for additional development, including obtaining service personnel records and a VA psychiatric examination to determine if any current psychiatric disorder is related to military service.

The Board has granted service connection for an acquired psychiatric disorder other than PTSD and a total disability rating based on individual unemployability due to bilateral knee disabilities.

The Board denied the Veteran's claim for service connection for an acquired psychiatric disorder, including PTSD and MDD. The claim was remanded due to a lack of corroborated stressor evidence. A supplemental VA opinion is needed to determine if any current/additional disability is etiologically-related to VA medical treatment.

The Veteran's bowel and bladder disabilities were not incurred during active service and are not proximately due to or aggravated by his service-connected degenerative changes of the thoracolumbar spine.

The Veteran's PTSD and depressive disorder NOS were rated at 30 percent from October 31, 2006 to April 18, 2010.

The Board has remanded the case due to insufficient evidence and an inadequate VA examination. The Veteran's claim for service connection for a psychiatric disability, including Posttraumatic Stress Disorder, is now pending.

The Veteran seeks service connection for an acquired psychiatric disorder, including PTSD and depression. The Board has determined that a VA examination is needed to determine the nature, extent, onset and etiology of any acquired psychiatric disorder found to be present.

The Board has granted a higher rating of 70 percent for the Veteran's service-connected residuals of traumatic brain injury (TBI), effective from October 25, 2013. The claim for major depressive disorder was reopened and is currently under consideration.

The Board has remanded the case for further development, including obtaining medical records and scheduling a psychiatric examination to determine if any of the Veteran's acquired psychiatric disorders are related to his active service or aggravated by a service-connected disability.

The Veteran's claims for PTSD and depression were previously denied, and no new and material evidence has been submitted to reopen the depression claim. The service connection for memory loss is pending.

The Veteran's major depressive disorder is found to be as likely as not caused by his service-connected degenerative disc disease with disc herniation status post L5-S1 diskectomy. The issues of higher ratings for the lumbar spine and TDIU are remanded.

The Veteran's major depressive disorder was rated at 30 percent prior to October 16, 2009. As of August 26, 2008, the rating increased to 50 percent.

The Board has decided to remand the case for additional development, including a VA examination and opinion regarding the Veteran's psychiatric disorders. The Veteran is seeking service connection for his acquired psychiatric disorders, which include PTSD, anxiety disorder, depressive disorder, and bipolar disorder.

The Board has remanded the case due to the Veteran's failure to report for a scheduled hearing and because of an undelivered notice letter. The case will be returned to the RO for further action.

The Veteran's claim for service connection for an acquired psychiatric disability, including PTSD, major depressive disorder, and generalized anxiety disorder, is being remanded due to the need for a VA examination and additional evidence.