Depression decisions — 2020

The Board has granted service connection for an acquired psychiatric disability, including anxiety, posttraumatic stress disorder, major depressive disorder, and insomnia on an accrued basis. Service connection was denied for sleep apnea, hyperlipidemia, a breathing problem disability, a cervical disability, degeneration of the intervertebral disc, hypoglycemia, a right elbow disability, a left knee disability, a chest pain disability, bilateral blepharitis, bilateral senile cataracts, dry eyes, and vision problems on an accrued basis.

The Board has granted service connection for major depressive disorder, finding that the Veteran's symptoms began during his active duty and are related to his military service.

The Veteran's claim for an increased rating of 30 percent or more for his service-connected other recurrent depressive disorder is being remanded due to the need to obtain Social Security Administration (SSA) records.

The Board has remanded the cases for further development and consideration, including a VA examination for heart disorder and issuance of a statement of the case on psychiatric disorder.

The Board has determined that additional evidence was added to the record since the last decision and requires further consideration before a final determination can be made on the claims for increased ratings for major depressive disorder and migraine headaches.

The appeals for service connection of major depressive disorder, PTSD, penile deformity, and brain cancer have been dismissed due to the Veteran's death.

The Veteran's VR&E services were remanded due to insufficient evidence regarding his need for additional education to overcome employment barriers related to his disabilities. The case will be further evaluated by a VA counselor.

The appeal was dismissed due to the appellant's death, and no service connection issues were addressed.

The Board has granted service connection for PTSD but has remanded the case to determine if Major Depressive Disorder is also related to service.

The Veteran's claims for service connection for a sleep disturbance disorder, hypertension, and an acquired psychiatric disorder other than PTSD or a sleep disturbance disorder are being remanded due to the need for additional medical opinions.

The Veteran's appeals for service connection and increased evaluations have been dismissed due to his withdrawal of the appeal.

The Board has decided to remand the Veteran's claims for sleep apnea, hypertension, a left foot disability, PTSD, and MDD due to the need for further evidentiary development. Specifically, VA treatment records from before May 2007 at San Juan VAMC should be obtained, as well as any untranslated documents in Spanish.

The Board has decided to remand the Veteran's claims of service connection for an acquired psychiatric disability and PTSD due to the need for a VA examination and opinions regarding the issues.

The Veteran's acquired psychiatric disability, including PTSD and depression, was incurred while in service. The Board granted service connection for these conditions based on the evidence showing they were present during active duty.

The Veteran's initial compensable rating for a psychiatric disability, characterized as major depressive disorder, is denied.,The Veteran's initial compensable rating for a skin disability, characterized as acne keloidalis, is denied.,Service connection for an undiagnosed illness or a medically unexplained chronic multi-symptom illness (MUCMI) claimed as essential tremor is granted.

The Veteran's service connection claims for BPH, HTN, and an acquired psychiatric condition are granted. The claim for service connection for an acquired psychiatric condition is remanded.

The Board has remanded the case due to new evidence provided by the Veteran, which raised a reasonable possibility of substantiating his claim for service connection. A VA examination is required to determine if any current acquired psychiatric disorder was caused by military service.

The Board has remanded several issues for further development and readjudication, including the effective dates for service connection and ratings for various disabilities. The Veteran's claims are also being deferred due to other pending matters such as a claim for service connection for bladder cancer.

The Board dismissed the appeal for an increased rating for hypertension and denied a higher initial rating for MDD. The case was remanded to determine if there should be an earlier effective date for service connection of MDD.

The Veteran's claim for service connection for bipolar disorder is denied as he does not have a current diagnosis of the condition.,The Veteran's claims for service connection for macular degeneration, Parkinson’s Disease, depressive disorder, and anxiety disorder are remanded due to potential exposure to herbicide agents during his military service.,The Veteran's claim for SMC based on need of aid and attendance is also remanded.