Depression Board decisions

The Board has granted service connection for generalized anxiety disorder and persistent depressive disorder, finding that these conditions are related to the Veteran's active duty service.

The Board has remanded the case due to a failure to verify the Veteran's November 1997 stressor, and requests that the Military Records Research Center attempt to verify this event. The Board also requested an addendum opinion from an appropriate clinician regarding whether the Veteran currently has an acquired psychiatric disorder including PTSD, and if it is at least as likely as not related to service.

The Veteran's appeal for increased disability ratings for PTSD, TDIU and DEA benefits was denied. The Veteran is currently rated at 70 percent for PTSD with TBI.

The Veteran is granted TDIU and increased ratings for various service-connected conditions, including diabetic neuropathy. The effective date of the grant of service connection for diabetic neuropathy was denied.

The Veteran's TBI residuals, including migraines and depressive disorder with anxious distress, are rated at 50 percent effective February 9, 2017. An earlier effective date of April 29, 2019, for SMC due to loss of use of a creative organ is granted.

The Board has granted service connection for an acquired psychiatric disorder, including adjustment disorder with mixed anxiety and depressed mood, depressive disorder, and posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD), effective November 13, 2016. The decision is based on the Veteran's consistent reporting of a drowning incident during active duty.

The Board denied service connection for anxiety and alcoholism, finding that the evidence did not support a link to active duty.

The Board denied the Veteran's request for an earlier effective date for service connection of Major Depressive Disorder, finding that the correct effective date is February 11, 2020. The decision states that the claim was received on this date and that entitlement to service connection arose in July 2011.

The Veteran's service-connected PTSD, MDD, panic disorder and obsessive compulsive disorder more nearly approximates total occupational and social impairment from the initial award of service connection. The Board has granted an initial increased disability evaluation rating of 100 percent.

The Veteran's appeal for an earlier effective date for the grant of a 70 percent disability rating for service-connected psychiatric disabilities has been dismissed because no notice of disagreement was filed within the required time frame.

The Board has granted the Veteran's claim of service connection for Major Depressive Disorder (MDD) as secondary to his service-connected tinnitus. The evidence shows that the Veteran's MDD is caused by or related to his tinnitus.

The Veteran's service-connected major depressive disorder prevents her from obtaining and maintaining substantial gainful employment, leading to a TDIU. Additionally, she is eligible for SMC at the housebound rate due to her other service-connected disabilities.

The Veteran's claim for service connection for chronic sinusitis is granted. The claims for higher ratings for migraine headaches, mitral valve prolapse, and an acquired psychiatric disability other than PTSD are remanded due to the need for additional medical opinions. The claims for bilateral hearing loss, chronic fatigue, rheumatoid arthritis, dermatitis, low back disability, and sciatic radicular pain of both lower extremities are also remanded.

The Veteran's PTSD/MDD and low back disability are not rated higher than the current assigned ratings of 70 percent and 20 percent, respectively.

The Veteran's claim for service connection of major depression was granted with an effective date of April 25, 2019. The original denial in June 2009 became final due to the lack of timely appeal and new and material evidence submission.

The Board has granted the Veteran's claim for service connection for major depressive disorder, finding that his symptoms are related to personal assaults during service and resolving doubt in his favor.

The Veteran's appeal for increased ratings was denied. The adjustment disorder with mixed anxiety and depression is rated at 30 percent, while the left knee strain remains at 10 percent.

The Veteran's service-connected disabilities, including diabetes, generalized anxiety and major depressive disorder, DJD, and gouty arthritis, rendered him unable to secure or maintain substantially gainful employment as of May 8, 2001. As a result, the Board has granted an earlier effective date for TDIU from that date.

The Veteran's claim for an initial rating in excess of 30 percent for UDD is denied, and his claim for service connection for bilateral hearing loss is remanded.

The Board has determined that the Veteran's major depressive disorder is related to her service, and therefore grants her claim for service connection.