Depression decisions — 2017

The Board has remanded the case for further development and readjudication of the appellant's claims, including those regarding service connection. The character of discharge issue is also being addressed.

The Veteran's claim for service connection for a dental disability for treatment purposes has been reopened and granted. Service connection is also granted for an acquired psychiatric disorder due to in-service exposure to radiation. The Veteran is assigned a 10% rating for bilateral hearing loss.

The Board has granted service connection for an acquired psychiatric disorder, including anxiety, major depression, and bipolar disorder, which are found to be aggravated by the Veteran's service-connected tinnitus. The claim for a compensable rating for bilateral hearing loss is denied. The issue of service connection for hypertension is being remanded.

The Veteran's service-connected Major Depressive Disorder has been rated at 70 percent since April 22, 2010. The Board finds that the evidence does not support a higher rating during this period.

The Board has determined that the Veteran's DJD of the lumbar spine is related to his service-connected disabilities, and he is granted service connection for this condition. The claim for an acquired psychiatric disorder was not addressed due to a lack of adjudication on chronic pain syndrome.

The Veteran's claim for an earlier effective date for the addition of his spouse as a dependent was denied because he did not provide the requested evidence within one year from notification of the rating action. The Board found that there is no legal basis to grant SMC based on aid and attendance or housebound status due to lack of proper VCAA notice.

The Veteran's appeal is remanded due to the need for additional evidence and a new VA examination. The issues include service connection for various conditions, with no specific theory of service connection provided.

The Veteran's appeal has been withdrawn by his representative prior to the Board issuing a decision.

The Board has remanded the case for further development, including obtaining a medical opinion regarding whether the Veteran's behavior during his discharge was due to psychiatric disability and if he was insane as defined by VA regulations at the time of his discharge.

The Board denied service connection for an acquired psychiatric disability, other than PTSD. The Veteran's death was not found to be due to a service-connected disability.,The DIC claim under 38 U.S.C. § 1318 was also denied.

The Board has remanded the case for further development, including obtaining updated treatment records and verifying any claimed military stressors. The Veteran will be scheduled for a VA examination to determine if his acquired psychiatric disabilities are related to service.

The Veteran's death was caused by suicide, which is believed to have been due to his service-connected prostatitis aggravating his depression and anxiety.

The Board has determined that the Veteran's acquired psychiatric disorder, including PTSD, depression, and anxiety, is related to his service. The right hip disability was also found to be related to his service. However, there is no evidence of a current left hip disability.

The Board has remanded the claim for a TDIU due to incomplete development of evidence, including lack of an opinion addressing combined effects of all service-connected disabilities on employment and impact/significance of associated medications.

The Veteran's appeal is remanded for further development, including verification of claimed in-service stressors and a VA psychiatric examination to determine if any diagnosed psychiatric disorder is related to his active duty service.

The Board found that the Veteran's psychiatric conditions, including bipolar disorder and dysthymia, were not incurred or aggravated during service. The evidence did not establish a link between his current psychiatric conditions and his military service.

The Board denied the Veteran's claims for service connection for PTSD, Personality Disorder, Depressive Disorder, and Polysubstance Abuse due to lack of a current diagnosis of PTSD and because the disorders are not diseases or injuries that can be service connected.

The Board denied the Veteran's claim for an acquired psychiatric disorder other than posttraumatic stress disorder, finding no evidence to support a nexus between his current condition and service.

The Veteran's anxiety disorder associated with tinnitus is rated at 50 percent for the period May 13, 2015 forward. The Board denied a higher rating and also found that he did not meet criteria for TDIU.

The Veteran's acquired psychiatric disorder, including psychotic disorder, depression NOS and anxiety NOS, is found to be proximately due to his service-connected PTSD. Therefore, the claim for secondary service connection is granted.