Depression decisions — 2019

The Board has remanded the case for further development regarding the initial disability rating of PTSD with depression due to unclear attribution of symptoms. The service connection claim for tinnitus remains denied.

The Veteran's appeal for TDIU on an extraschedular basis under 38 C.F.R. § 4.16(b) before July 31, 2014 was dismissed due to the procedural error of granting a TDIU while the issue was in appellate status.

The Board denied service connection for persistent depressive disorder, finding that the Veteran's condition was not related to his active duty service and could not have been aggravated by military service.

The Veteran's depression is productive of occupational and social impairment with deficiencies in most areas, including work, social relations, thinking, and mood. The Board has granted an increased initial disability rating of 70 percent for depression.

The Veteran's claims for service connection for an acquired psychiatric disorder and TDIU are being remanded due to duty to assist errors. The case will be returned for the VA examiner to provide a rationale regarding whether the Veteran’s psychiatric disorders are related to service, including his reported stressors as a firefighter during military service.

The Board has determined that there is sufficient evidence to support a finding of service connection for an acquired psychiatric disability, including PTSD. The Veteran's symptoms are related to her military experiences and other trauma.

The Veteran's claim for service connection for bilateral hearing loss is denied as there is no evidence of a current disability. The Veteran's claim for an initial increased rating in excess of 70 percent for PTSD with major depressive disorder is remanded due to new evidence received since the last statement of the case.

The Board has granted service connection for an acquired psychiatric disorder, including recurrent severe major depressive disorder with psychotic features and posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD), based on a VA-contracted psychiatrist's opinion linking the conditions to an in-service personal assault during active military service.

The Veteran's appeals for service connection and increased ratings were dismissed due to his death. The case is referred back to the AOJ for substitution of claimant.

The Board has determined that the Veteran's major depressive disorder is related to harassment during active duty service and grants service connection for this condition.

The Board has decided to remand the claim for an acquired psychiatric disability, including depression and anxiety, as secondary to service-connected physical disabilities. Additional evidence received since the last statement of the case must be considered.

The Board has decided to remand the case due to insufficient evidence regarding the Veteran's psychiatric conditions, particularly PTSD and depressive disorder. The Veteran is seeking service connection for these conditions.

The Board has granted service connection for sleep apnea and restored the Veteran's rating for primary insomnia and depression to 30 percent.

The Board has found that the Veteran was not given a sufficient opportunity to attend the scheduled examination for his acquired psychiatric disorder. The matter is therefore being remanded to reschedule the Veteran for an examination to evaluate the etiology of the claimed condition.

The Board has determined that the Veteran's acquired psychiatric disorders, including PTSD, depression, and anxiety, were not incurred in service or are otherwise etiologically related to an in-service injury, event, or disease.

The Veteran's acquired psychiatric disability, diagnosed as unspecified depressive disorder with anxious distress and unspecified major neurocognitive disorder, is found to be related to his in-service service.

The Veteran's claim for service connection for a nervous condition was reopened, and the appeal is granted. The case of service connection for an acquired psychiatric disorder, claimed as schizoaffective disorder, depression, anxiety, bipolar disorder and PTSD is remanded.

The Veteran's acquired psychiatric disability, including depression, mood disorder, dysthymia, major depressive disorder, PTSD, intermittent explosive disorder, psychosis NOS, and anxiety, is related to service as secondary to his service-connected disabilities.

The Veteran's tinnitus is granted as service connected. The Board finds the Veteran's claims for bilateral hearing loss and a psychiatric disorder to include PTSD and depressive disorder are remanded due to insufficient evidence.

The Veteran is granted a TDIU for the periods from October 1, 2016 to April 11, 2017, and from June 1, 2018. The Board finds that the evidence is in equipoise on whether the Veteran has been unable to maintain substantially gainful employment solely due to service-connected disabilities for these periods.