Depression decisions — 2015

The Board found that the Veteran's current psychiatric disability, including depressive disorder and anxiety, is not related to his service. The examiner opined that his depressive symptoms during service were alcohol-related and resolved.

The Board has determined that the Veteran does not have a current diagnosis of PTSD or any other psychiatric disability, and therefore service connection cannot be established.

The Board has dismissed the appeal due to the death of the appellant, and no jurisdiction remains to adjudicate the merits of the claims.

The Board has determined that the Veteran's claimed psychiatric conditions, including delusional disorder and depression, were not incurred or aggravated by service. The diagnoses of diabetes mellitus and hypertension have also been denied as they are not shown to be related to service.

The Board granted the Veteran's claims for service connection for an acquired psychiatric disorder (including PTSD) and a 10 percent disability rating for right knee DJD, effective from the date of the decision. The Court remanded the case to consider whether there was any in-service stressor related to his psychiatric condition.

The Board found that the Veteran does not have a diagnosis of PTSD, and his psychiatric disorder is characterized as dysthymic disorder and depression. The medical evidence did not support a connection between these conditions and his military service.

The Veteran's PTSD with panic disorder and depressive disorder has been productive of occupational and social impairment with reduced reliability and productivity due to symptoms such as a blunted affect; intrusive thoughts; occasional visual hallucinations; memory impairment; sleep difficulty; extreme anger; and difficulty in establishing and maintaining effective work and social relationships. For the entire rating period on appeal prior to February 24, 2014, the criteria for the 50 percent rating have been approximated.

The Veteran's claim for service connection for an acquired psychiatric disorder, including PTSD, major depression, dysthymic disorder and adjustment disorder, is being remanded due to inadequate examination in the May 2014 Board decision. Additional VA treatment records are needed, as well as a new addendum opinion from the examiner.

The Veteran's appeal involves multiple service connection claims for various conditions, including PTSD, chronic fatigue syndrome, and undiagnosed illnesses. The case is being remanded due to the need for a Board hearing.

The Veteran's appeal is being remanded to allow for a Board video-conference hearing at the El Paso VA facility as soon as possible after April 2015. The Veteran requested additional time due to obtaining new evidence and wishes to attend his hearing at the El Paso VA facility.

The Board has remanded the case due to insufficient medical information regarding whether any acquired psychiatric disorder clearly and unmistakably existed prior to service and was not aggravated by service. The Veteran's claim for service connection is being returned to the AOJ for further development.

The Veteran's acquired psychiatric disorder, including depression and anxiety, is related to his service-connected bilateral hearing loss disability and tinnitus.,The Veteran's vertigo is related to military service.

The Veteran's PTSD is currently rated at 50 percent, but the Board finds that his symptoms more closely approximate a 70 percent rating due to occupational and social impairment with deficiencies in most areas.

The Board has determined that the Veteran's depression is related to his service and grants service connection for an acquired psychiatric disability, other than PTSD.

The Board has determined that the reduction in the disability rating for the Veteran's mood disorder from 30 percent to 10 percent effective July 1, 2013 was not warranted. The decision also found that the criteria for a total disability rating based on individual unemployability due to service-connected disability have been met.

The Board has reopened the Veteran's claims for service connection for a low back disorder and depression, but denied them on their merits.

The Veteran's claim for a higher rating for his major depressive disorder with schizoaffective disorder was denied as the evidence did not meet the criteria for a rating higher than 50 percent.

The Veteran's claim for service connection for a psychiatric disability, including depression, panic disorder with agoraphobia, schizophrenia, and posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD), is being remanded due to the need for further development regarding the nature and etiology of any acquired psychiatric disabilities.

The Veteran's appeal is being remanded for additional development, including VA examinations to determine the nature and etiology of her current psychiatric, heart, lung, right knee, and left knee disabilities. The claims will be re-evaluated after this process.

The Veteran's claim for an earlier effective date for PTSD with depression was denied, as the evidence did not show clear and unmistakable error in a 1971 rating decision.,Service connection for erectile dysfunction was denied because there is no service-connected condition to which it can be linked.