Depression Board decisions

The Veteran's PTSD with MDD was granted a disability rating of 70 percent since April 14, 2017. The symptoms included nightmares, intrusive thoughts and memories, emotional numbing, sleep impairment, hypervigilance, anger, substance abuse, depressed mood, anxiety, flattened affect, disturbances in motivation and mood, difficulty in establishing and maintaining effective work and social relationships, difficulty in adapting to stressful circumstances, including work or work like settings, and suicidal ideation.

The Veteran's depressive disorder and obstructive sleep apnea are granted service connection, but his cervical spine disability and thoracolumbar spine disability are denied. The left ankle disability is rated at the maximum allowed (40%), and a compensable evaluation for the residual scar is also denied.

The Veteran's back disability, unspecified depressive disorder with anxious distress features, and migraine headaches are all found to be aggravated or caused by his service-connected bilateral pes planus and ankle strain.,Service connection is granted for these conditions as secondary to the service-connected disabilities.

The Veteran's MDD is granted at a 70 percent rating prior to December 9, 2016. The Veteran's left shoulder rotator cuff tendonitis is granted at a 20 percent rating.

The Board has remanded the case due to inadequate examination and need for clarification of diagnoses, particularly regarding PTSD and depressive disorder. The Veteran's service treatment records indicate depression in service, which may be related to his current condition.

The Veteran's service-connected conditions do not meet the criteria for a TDIU as they are not shown to be of such severity as to effectively preclude all forms of substantially gainful employment.

The Veteran's claims for increased ratings for right knee patellofemoral pain and depressive disorder are being remanded due to the need for additional examinations and consideration of new evidence.

The Veteran's service connection claims for a back disability, hypertension, benign prostatic hypertrophy, left upper extremity neuropathy, right upper extremity neuropathy, and depressive disorder have been granted. However, the initial rating assigned is zero percent (noncompensable) for hearing loss and tinnitus.

The Board has denied service connection for bilateral hearing loss, headaches, and acquired psychiatric disorder. The Veteran's claim for a rating in excess of 10 percent for tinnitus is remanded. Service connection claims for left knee disability, back disability, and sleep apnea are also remanded.

The Board has remanded the Veteran's claims for further development due to potential exposure to herbicide agents during service in Vietnam. The VA will need to verify if the Veteran was present within the 12-nautical mile territorial sea of the Republic of Vietnam.

The Veteran's appeal is being remanded to obtain additional information and medical opinions regarding his claimed conditions, particularly asthma, headaches, and an acquired psychiatric disorder. The VA will also verify the alleged in-service stressors.

The Veteran's bilateral hearing loss is currently rated at 0% and tinnitus at 10%. The effective dates for service connection of bilateral hearing loss and PTSD remain August 8, 2014.,PTSD with major depressive disorder has been rated as 50% prior to April 4, 2017, and 70% since that date. Service connection remains remanded for further evaluation.

The Veteran's claims for service connection have been dismissed due to his withdrawal of the appeals.

The Veteran's service-connected acquired psychiatric disorder, diagnosed as major depressive disorder, is granted. The initial ratings for radiculopathy of the left and right lower extremities are denied. A total disability rating based on individual unemployability due to service-connected disabilities (TDIU) is granted.

The Veteran's service-connected PTSD with major depressive disorder has precluded her from performing substantially gainful employment since February 27, 2015. The Board finds that the Veteran is unemployable due to her service-connected mental disorders and grants TDIU effective February 27, 2015.

The Veteran's service-connected disabilities (diabetes mellitus type 2, bilateral retinopathy, peripheral bilateral lower extremity neuropathy, and depression) render him unable to secure or follow a substantially gainful occupation. The Board has granted the Veteran's TDIU claim.

The Veteran's MDD has been granted an initial rating of 70 percent, effective from the date of the decision. The evidence is at least evenly balanced as to whether the symptoms and overall impairment caused by the Veteran’s MDD have, throughout the pendency of the claim, more nearly approximated occupational and social impairment with deficiencies in most areas.

The Board denied the Veteran's claims for service connection for depression and a compensable rating for hepatitis C, finding that there was no evidence of an in-service disease or injury leading to current issues with depression, and that the Veteran's hepatitis C did not meet the criteria for a compensable rating.

The Board has granted the Veteran's motion to vacate its June 27, 2018 decision denying an increased rating for his service-connected depression and denied a separate claim of entitlement to TDIU.

The Veteran's TDIU claim is remanded due to the need for additional development regarding his functional impairment from service-connected disabilities between March 1, 2008 and June 22, 2011. The case will be referred to the Director, Compensation Service, for extraschedular consideration.