Acquired psychiatric disorder Board decisions

The Board has determined that new and material evidence has not been presented to reopen the claim of entitlement to service connection for the cause of the veteran's death. The appellant's claims were previously denied due to a lack of medical evidence linking the cause of death to service or service-connected conditions.

The Board has reopened the appellant's claims for service connection for residuals of radiation exposure and an acquired psychiatric disorder other than PTSD. However, the new evidence does not provide a plausible link between these conditions and his military service. The claim for service connection for post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), heart condition, and alcoholism remains without merit.

The Board has reopened the veteran's claim for service connection for a disorder of the spine and granted it. The claims for service connection for disorders of the knees, ankles, arms, skin, and hypertension are denied as not well-grounded.

The veteran's bipolar disorder, previously diagnosed as schizophrenia, was manifested by active psychotic manifestations of such severity and persistence as to produce complete social and industrial inadaptability for the period from April 3, 1984 to June 19, 1989. The Board granted a 100 percent evaluation for this period.

The Board has reopened the claim for service connection for an acquired psychiatric disorder due to new evidence. However, the claim remains not well-grounded as there is no medical evidence linking any current psychiatric disorders to military service.

The veteran's claim for a psychiatric disability, including depression, has been found plausible. His low back disability is determined to be secondary to his service-connected left knee disability. The veteran's left knee disability meets the criteria for a 60% evaluation.

The Board finds that the veteran's current psychiatric diagnoses have not been shown to be related to active service and there is no verified in-service stressor. Therefore, the claim for service connection for a psychiatric disability, including PTSD, is denied.

The veteran's request for an effective date earlier than December 14, 1988 for a total rating for compensation purposes based upon individual unemployability was denied.,The claim for an earlier effective date for the award of Dependents' Educational Assistance under Chapter 35, United States Code was also denied.

The Board has determined that new and material evidence has been submitted to reopen the claims for service connection for back disability and psychiatric disability. The appellant now has a current diagnosis of these conditions, which were related by medical professionals to injuries sustained during his military service.

The Board denied the veteran's claims for service connection for peripheral neuropathy, PTSD, and tinnitus. The claim of service connection for a psychiatric disorder (claimed as dysthymia and PTSD) was considered on a de novo basis. Service connection for chronic low back pain was granted with a 10% evaluation. The veteran's left inguinal hernia and eye disorder claims were denied due to lack of new and material evidence.

The Board found that the schizophrenia preexisted service and denied entitlement to service connection.

The Board has reopened the veteran's claim of service connection for a psychiatric disorder and found that new evidence supports this claim. However, the Board also determined that there is no competent medical evidence linking the current psychiatric disability to his period of active military service.

The Board found that the appellant did not establish veteran status for his claims of service connection for a back disorder and an acquired psychiatric disorder, as there was no competent medical evidence showing treatment or diagnosis of these conditions during his qualifying period of active duty for training (ADT).

The Board has reopened the veteran's claim for service connection for an acquired psychiatric disorder, including paranoid schizophrenia. However, the claim remains not well grounded as there is no competent medical evidence to establish a nexus between the current condition and service.

The Board denied the appellant's claims for an increased rating for schizophrenia and a total disability rating based on individual unemployability due to service-connected disability, finding that the appellant failed to report for scheduled VA psychiatric examinations without good cause.

The VA has granted a 30 percent disability rating for the veteran's PTSD, which is currently evaluated as 30 percent disabling.

The Board has determined that the veteran's claim for service connection for a chronic cardiovascular disability, including coronary artery disease and hypertension, is not well-grounded. The February 1992 rating decision denying service connection for paranoid-type schizophrenia is final as no new and material evidence was submitted to reopen this claim.

The Board denied the veteran's claim for service connection for an acquired psychiatric disorder, finding that there was no direct or secondary relationship to his military service.

The Board finds that there is not a reasonable possibility of valid claims concerning whether the veteran's acquired psychiatric disorder, chronic low back disability, and hypertension were incurred in or aggravated by service.

The Board denied an increased rating for bilateral hearing loss and did not reopen the claim of service connection for PTSD. The decision on secondary service connection was remanded.