Acquired psychiatric disorder decisions — 2006

The Board has granted service connection for hypertension. The issues of service connection for gastrointestinal disability, vertigo, and a psychiatric disability (depression) are being remanded due to the lack of VA examination reports.

The Board has determined that the veteran's hypertension and acquired psychiatric disorder are not proximately due to or the result of his service-connected cervical spine and left wrist disabilities.

The Board found no evidence of a back or psychiatric disability during service and concluded that the current conditions are not related to active service.

The veteran's pseudofolliculitis barbae was incurred or aggravated in service, and the Board has granted service connection for this condition. The other issues are addressed in the REMAND portion of the decision.

The Board found that the appellant's acquired psychiatric disorder, to include PTSD, was not incurred or aggravated by her active duty for training (ACDUTRA) with the Coast Guard Reserve. The claim is denied.

The Board has granted service connection for an acquired psychiatric disorder and increased the evaluation of the right shoulder disability to 30 percent. The evaluations for traumatic neuritis of the ulnar nerves remain unchanged.

The VA determined that the veteran's current psychiatric disabilities, including schizophrenia and schizoaffective disorder, were not incurred in or aggravated by active service.

The veteran's claim for an increased evaluation of his service-connected psychiatric disorder is being remanded due to the need to obtain missing VA treatment records and ensure all development has been completed.

The Board denied service connection for PTSD and a psychiatric disability other than PTSD, as well as for a foot disorder, skin disorder, and prostate disorder. The veteran's stressors were not verified, and there was no evidence of in-service injury or disease related to these conditions.

The veteran's claims for service connection for various disabilities, including those due to an undiagnosed illness, were denied as the evidence did not establish a link between any of these conditions and his military service.

The veteran's appeal was not timely filed for his claim of compensation under 38 U.S.C.A. § 1151 for hepatitis C, and the Board denies this issue. The remaining claims are all denied as secondary to service-connected conditions.

The Board has determined that new and material evidence has been received to reopen the veteran's claims of entitlement to service connection for an acquired psychiatric disorder, PTSD; a cardiovascular disorder, hypertension; a spine disorder; residuals of a head injury; and chloracne. The veteran served in Vietnam but there is no indication that his current conditions are related to his military service.

The Board denied an earlier effective date for the award of TDIU, finding that the veteran did not file a formal or informal claim for TDIU prior to November 4, 1983. The RO awarded service connection and TDIU from that date.

The Board found that the veteran's current psychiatric disorder was not incurred in or aggravated during his period of active military service and is not etiologically related to his service-connected lipomas.

The Board denied service connection for memory loss, an acquired psychiatric disorder to include PTSD, dysthymia, and anxiety disorder, a low back disorder, and a sleep disorder. The veteran's claims were not supported by competent medical evidence linking these conditions to his active service.

The Board found that the veteran's claimed residuals of a head injury were not incurred in or aggravated by service. The claim for an acquired psychiatric disorder was also addressed, but is being remanded due to insufficient evidence.

The Board has determined that the veteran's arthritis of the upper and lower extremities was not incurred in or aggravated by active military service. The claim for a psychiatric disorder is pending and will be addressed after additional development.

The Board found that the veteran's acquired psychiatric disorder was not incurred in or aggravated by his period of active service and denied his claim for service connection.

The Board has determined that the veteran's claims of service connection for a psychiatric disorder and diabetes mellitus need further examination and development. The RO is instructed to obtain all relevant medical records, review the veteran's claims file by the examiners who provided the May and June 2003 VA examinations, and provide an addendum addressing whether the veteran's conditions are related to service or within one year of service.

The Board has determined that the veteran's psychiatric disorder is not related to his military service and therefore denied his claim for service connection.