Depression decisions — 2016

The Veteran's appeal is being remanded for additional development, including a VA psychiatric examination to determine the nature and etiology of any current psychiatric disorders.

The Board found no evidence of a current PTSD diagnosis and determined that the Veteran's claimed psychiatric disorders are not related to his service.

The Board has remanded the case due to a failure to afford the Veteran a requested hearing, and the appeal is now pending for further action.

The Board denied the Veteran's claims for service connection for an acquired psychiatric disorder and TDIU as there was no evidence of a diagnosis or etiology related to his military service.

The Board has ordered a remand to obtain an addendum opinion regarding the Veteran's diagnosed depressive disorder and whether it is related to his service. The case will be returned for further adjudication.

The Board has remanded the case due to inadequate examination and new evidence is needed for a determination on the Veteran's claims.

The Board found no evidence of a psychiatric disability during service or within one year post-service, and the Veteran's current depression is not linked to his service-connected bilateral pes planus with plantar fasciitis. The VA examiner concluded that there is less than 50% probability that the Veteran's current depressive disorder is caused by or aggravated by his service-connected foot disability.

The Board has remanded the case due to scheduling issues and will handle any further development as required.

The Board has determined that the Veteran's acquired psychiatric disorder, diagnosed as a major depressive disorder, is related to his active military service and grants the claim for service connection.

The Board has determined that the evidence is at least in equipoise as to whether the Veteran's PTSD is related to his military service, and therefore grants service connection for PTSD.

The Veteran's PTSD and major depression have been rated at 50 percent since January 12, 2011. The initial rating has now been increased to 70 percent.

The Veteran's appeal for an increased rating of 70 percent for his generalized anxiety disorder with depression has been withdrawn.

The Board has ordered additional development due to the passage of time and the need for updated medical evaluations. The Veteran's claims for increased ratings will be reconsidered after all new evidence is obtained.

The Veteran's acquired psychiatric disorder to include major depressive disorder and bipolar disorder caused total occupational and social impairment from March 18, 2013. The VA assigned a 70 percent rating for this period.

The Veteran's service-connected Major Depressive Disorder and Anxiety Disorder have been rated at 50 percent since December 1, 2015.

The Veteran's appeal is remanded to obtain additional medical records and employment information, and for a VA examination to assess his employability due to service-connected disabilities.

The Board finds that the Veteran has major depression related to service and grants service connection for this condition.

The Veteran withdrew his appeal for the initial increased ratings for PTSD and major depressive disorder prior to November 16, 2011, and higher than 70 percent thereafter.

The Veteran's PTSD was manifested by occupational and social impairment with reduced reliability and productivity throughout the entire appeal period, warranting a 50 percent rating for PTSD.

The Veteran's service-connected psychiatric disorder, characterized as PTSD with Major Depressive Disorder and Psychotic Features, has been productive of total occupational and social impairment prior to March 25, 2014. The Board granted a 100 percent rating for this condition effective March 25, 2014. As the grant of a 100 percent rating renders moot the appeal for TDIU prior to March 25, 2014, that issue is no longer before the Board.