Depression Board decisions

The Veteran is granted a total disability rating based on individual unemployability (TDIU) from August 13, 2009 to November 8, 2013 due to his service-connected disabilities preventing him from maintaining substantially gainful employment.

The Veteran's claims for service connection have been reopened due to the submission of new and material evidence. The cases are now remanded for further development, including obtaining VA treatment records and attempting to corroborate in-service stressors.

The Board denied service connection for various conditions, including joint condition, muscle condition, fatigue/weakness, hives, insomnia, asthma, sleep apnea, cerebrovascular accident (CVA), headaches, obsessive compulsive disorder, and depressive disorder, all claimed as due to exposure to contaminated water at Camp Lejeune.

The Veteran's claim for service connection for an acquired psychiatric condition, to include PTSD, has been reopened. The Board finds new and material evidence has been submitted and remands the case for further development including a VA examination.

The Veteran's claim for service connection for diverticulitis with claimed diarrhea/nausea/constipation has been reopened, and he is granted a 50 percent disability evaluation for PTSD and other specified depressive disorder. The initial disability evaluation in excess of 50 percent for PTSD and other specified depressive disorder is denied. The Veteran's claim for service connection for gastrointestinal condition secondary to PTSD is remanded.

The Board has determined that the Veteran's anxiety disorder and major depressive disorder are related to his military service, granting service connection for these conditions.

The Board is remanding the claims for bilateral hearing loss, tinnitus, left knee instability, right knee disorder, herpes simplex, and various hip conditions. The Veteran has submitted new evidence that needs to be considered in a Supplemental Statement of the Case (SSOC).

The Veteran's rating for major depressive disorder with anxious distress and panic disorder with agoraphobia is denied, but a TDIU is granted.

The Veteran's PTSD with depressive disorder is granted an initial 70 percent evaluation, effective from the date of the decision.

The Veteran's claim for service connection for bilateral spondylolysis of the lumbar spine has been reopened and is granted. However, his claims for hypertension, GERD, depression, osteoarthritis of the left hip, and osteoarthritis of the right hip remain denied.,Service connection was not established for any of the Veteran's conditions due to lack of evidence linking them to service.

The Veteran's major depressive disorder with anxiety is granted a rating of 70 percent, effective October 9, 2012. The hearing loss disability remains noncompensable.

The Veteran's claim for service connection for an acquired psychiatric disorder, including PTSD, was denied. His claims for visual field loss and TBI were granted with respective ratings of 30% and 10%. The claim for multiple noncompensable disabilities was denied.

The Board has remanded the Veteran's claims for service connection due to insufficient evidence and need for further examination. The issues include bilateral eye disorder, an acquired psychiatric disorder (including PTSD, anxiety disorder, and depression), and Gulf War Syndrome with unexplained chronic multisymptom illness.

The Veteran's TDIU claim is granted from June 16, 2014. The case is remanded for consideration of extraschedular TDIU prior to that date.

The Veteran's depression is granted as service connected, and an earlier effective date of March 26, 2015 for a 50% rating for migraine headaches is granted.

The Veteran's appeal for restoration of a 40 percent rating for lumbar spine degenerative disc disease is granted, effective August 1, 2014. The appeals for service connection for bilateral flat feet, an acquired psychological disorder other than PTSD, and a rating in excess of 40 percent for lumbar spine DDD are remanded.

The Board has decided to remand the Veteran's claims for additional development due to insufficient medical opinions and potential missing service records. The low back disability claim is being remanded because of inadequate VA examination, while the PTSD with depression and anxiety claim requires consideration of recent VA treatment records.

The Board has determined that additional development is necessary to address the Veteran's claims for service connection for PTSD and whether her service-connected primary insomnia has aggravated any diagnosed psychiatric disorders. The case is being remanded for further examination and opinion.

The Veteran's major depressive disorder is granted, with a disability rating of 30 percent. The other conditions are denied.

The Board has granted service connection for the Veteran's bilateral knee, left ankle, and right ankle disabilities as secondary to his service-connected bilateral pes planus. The mental health disability is also found to be secondary to these musculoskeletal conditions.