Acquired psychiatric disorder Board decisions

The Board has reopened the veteran's claim of service connection for schizophrenia and granted it, attributing the condition to his service as a Memorial Activities Specialist.

The veteran is found incompetent to handle disbursement of VA funds due to his severe mental illness and cognitive deficits.

The Board has reopened the claim for service connection for an acquired psychiatric disorder and granted it. The veteran's current diagnoses include schizophrenia, bipolar disorder, and other mental health conditions. Service connection is established based on evidence of a psychosis present within one year after separation from service.

The Board denied the veteran's request to reopen his claim of entitlement to service connection for a psychiatric disability due to lack of new and material evidence.

The veteran has a permanent and total disability rating based on service-connected psychiatric disability. The appellant, the veteran's daughter, turned 26 before this effective date, making her ineligible for Dependents' Educational Assistance Program benefits under Chapter 35.

The Board denied the veteran's claims for increased evaluations for his service-connected schizophrenia, finding that the evidence did not meet the criteria for a higher evaluation prior to May 18, 1999 and as of May 18, 1999.

The Board has remanded the case for further development, including obtaining medical records and examinations to determine the current severity of service-connected disabilities and whether a psychiatric disorder is related to service.

The Board has denied the veteran's claims for service connection for a heart disability and increased ratings for his back and conversion reaction disabilities due to lack of evidence linking these conditions to his military service.

The Board has denied the veteran's claims for service connection for headaches, chest pain or disability manifested by chest pain, sleep impairment or a sleep disorder, and nervousness or a psychiatric disorder. The appeals are being remanded to obtain additional medical examinations and evidence.

The veteran's psychiatric disability was rated at 30 percent for the period August 18, 2001 to January 9, 2003 and increased to 70 percent after January 10, 2003. The RO denied any higher ratings.

The Board has reopened the veteran's claim for service connection for a psychiatric disorder, including hysterical neurosis. However, there is no current medical diagnosis of such conditions and the evidence does not support a finding that these disorders are related to military service.

The Board has remanded the case for a Travel Board hearing at the RO. The appellant is advised that if he desires to withdraw the hearing request prior to the hearing being conducted, he may do so in writing.

The Board has ordered the VA to obtain terminal hospital records and seek an opinion on whether PTSD contributed to the veteran's death. The case is remanded for these actions.

The Board found no evidence to support the veteran's claims for service connection for PTSD and paranoid schizophrenia, as there was insufficient medical nexus evidence linking these conditions to his military service.

The Board found that the veteran's low back disability did not manifest during service and is unrelated to his period of active duty. The acquired psychiatric disorder was also denied as there was no evidence linking it to service.

The Board has reopened the veteran's claim for service connection for an acquired psychiatric disorder, including PTSD and schizophrenia. The case is remanded to obtain additional information regarding potential combat stressors and to schedule a VA examination.

The Board denied the appellant's claims for service connection for a back disorder and a psychiatric disorder, finding that there was no evidence of a preexisting condition worsening during service or any in-service injury.

The Board found that the appellant does not have paranoid schizophrenia that is causally or etiologically related to a period of active duty service, and thus denied his claim for service connection.

The Board denied the veteran's claims for service connection for coronary artery disease and a psychiatric condition as secondary to her breast cancer residuals, and also denied her claim for a total disability rating based on individual unemployability due to her service-connected disabilities. The preponderance of evidence did not support these claims.

The Board has determined that the veteran's schizophrenia, paranoid type warrants a 70 percent disability rating.