Depression Board decisions

The Board has remanded the issues of service connection for hypertension, initial disability rating for depression and dysthymic disorder, and total disability rating based on individual unemployability (TDIU).,Service connection for hypertension was not granted due to lack of in-service diagnosis or manifestation within a presumptive period. The Veteran's right leg varicose veins and chronic venous insufficiency were found not to be related to his hypertension.

A rating of 70 percent for Major Depressive Disorder (MDD) is granted effective September 1, 2014.,Effective September 1, 2014, the Veteran is also granted a total disability based on individual unemployability (TDIU).,The decision grants both the MDD rating and TDIU claim.

The Board has granted service connection for an acquired psychiatric disorder, including a generalized anxiety disorder and major depressive disorder, as secondary to the Veteran's service-connected chronic right hip adductor and flexor muscle myofascial strain. The claim for service connection for migraines is remanded.

The Board has remanded the case due to insufficient evidence regarding the Veteran's service connection claim for an acquired psychiatric disorder, including PTSD. The examiner is asked to consider all of the Veteran’s mental health treatment records and provide a new opinion on whether his current PTSD is related to his service.

The Board has remanded the case due to the need for additional development, including a VA examination and review of treatment records.

The Board has remanded the Veteran's claims due to deficiencies in the development of evidence and for further examinations. The issues include increased ratings for migraine headaches, major depressive disorder with TBI, and PTSD; entitlement to a total rating based on individual unemployability (TDIU); and service connection for PTSD.

The Veteran's service-connected disabilities do not prevent him from securing or following a substantially gainful occupation.

The Veteran's claims for increased ratings and TDIU are being remanded due to the need for additional development, including a new VA examination for her lumbar strain.

The Veteran's claim for service connection for an acquired psychiatric disorder, diagnosed as anxiety disorder, NOS, is granted. The Board also remanded the issues of secondary service connection and a rating in excess of 10 percent for a left knee disability.

The Board has decided to remand the claims for service connection due to insufficient evidence and need for further examination.

The Board has remanded the case due to outstanding private and VA treatment records that may support the Veteran's service connection claim for an acquired psychiatric disorder, including PTSD and depressive disorder. The AOJ is instructed to obtain these records and provide a supplemental medical opinion from the August 2016 VA examiner.

The Board has remanded the claims for service connection for an acquired psychiatric disorder, including depression and PTSD. The Veteran's allegations of physical assault by police and sexual assault while in jail are to be considered during the examination process.

The Veteran's PTSD, with depressive disorder and anxious distress, is granted a rating of 50 percent. Service connection for gout, right hip disability, left hip disability, right foot disability, and left foot disability are all granted.

The Board has remanded the Veteran's claim for an examination to determine if his acquired psychiatric disorder, including schizoaffective disorder and depressive disorder, had its onset during service or is due to an event or incident of his period of active service. The examiner must also opine whether any acquired psychiatric disorder is at least as likely as not caused by the Veteran's service-connected glomerulonephritis and aggravated beyond its natural progression.

The Board has dismissed the appeals for a compensable rating prior to April 10, 2009, and in excess of 70 percent thereafter for an acquired psychiatric disability, as well as the appeal for an effective date prior to April 10, 2009, for the award of a total disability rating due to individual unemployability (TDIU).

The Board has remanded the Veteran's claims for hypertension, major depressive disorder, obstructive sleep apnea, and degenerative disc disease of the lumbar spine due to outstanding service personnel records and treatment records. A VA examination is needed to assess the nature and etiology of these conditions.

The Veteran's service-connected PTSD with unspecified depressive disorder prevented him from obtaining and maintaining a substantially gainful occupation from February 29, 2016, through June 13, 2019.

The Veteran's major depressive disorder with alcohol use disorder and gambling disorder is rated at 70 percent, but the Board has ordered a remand to determine if a higher rating is warranted. The TDIU issue is also being remanded due to its inextricability from the rating issue.

The Board has granted service connection for bilateral hearing loss and tinnitus. The remaining claims of service connection for various conditions are remanded due to insufficient evidence.

The Board has denied the Veteran's claim for service connection for an acquired psychiatric disorder, including PTSD and adjustment disorder with anxiety and depression, finding that there is no current diagnosis of PTSD and no nexus between active service and his current condition.