PTSD (post-traumatic stress disorder) decisions — 2005

The veteran's claim for service connection of bilateral hearing loss has been reopened. His PTSD remains at a 70 percent rating, but his tinnitus claim was denied.

The Board has found that the veteran's PTSD is a result of combat stressors during his service in Vietnam and grants the claim for service connection.

The VA denied a higher rating for PTSD, maintaining the current 50% disability rating effective June 7, 2001.

The veteran's claim for a higher initial rating for service-connected PTSD is being remanded due to the need for additional development, including an examination and obtaining relevant medical records.

The Board denied service connection for dental trauma and increased the evaluation of major depression with PTSD to 70 percent, effective November 24, 2003.

The Board has determined that the veteran's PTSD is service-connected, with all doubt resolved in his favor.

The VA denied reopening of the claim for service connection for PTSD due to lack of new and material evidence.

The Board has determined that the veteran's claim for service connection for PTSD should be remanded to allow for further development, including a VA examination and consideration of additional evidence.

The Board has determined that the veteran's PTSD does not meet or approximate the criteria for a higher initial rating than 70 percent.

The veteran is not entitled to an effective date prior to April 12, 2001, for the assignment of a 100 percent evaluation for his PTSD. The earliest date on which he could have been granted a 100 percent evaluation was January 20, 2001, when he was hospitalized at a VA medical center.

The Board has remanded the case due to incomplete information regarding the veteran's military stressors and the need for verification. The veteran is also required to undergo a VA psychiatric examination to determine if he has PTSD related to his service.

The Board has determined that the veteran's acquired psychiatric disorder, including post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), is reasonably attributable to service and has granted service connection for this condition.

The Board has remanded the veteran's claims of entitlement to service connection for PTSD and depression due to potential verification of in-service stressors. The case will be reviewed again after obtaining additional evidence.

The Board has reopened the appellant's claim for PTSD and schizophrenia, finding that new evidence raises a reasonable possibility of substantiating the claims. However, service connection is denied as there is no evidence showing these conditions are related to military service.

The veteran seeks an earlier effective date for service connection for PTSD and a 100 percent schedular rating for anxiety reaction with depression and PTSD with psychosis. The Board denied this claim, finding that the February 1997 rating action became final due to lack of appeal on the effective date issue.

The Board denied the veteran's claims for service connection for Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder and an acquired psychiatric disorder, diagnosed as depression. The decision found that there was no credible supporting evidence of the claimed stressors and that the veteran did not meet the criteria for a diagnosis of PTSD due to lack of combat experience. Service connection for depression was also denied because there was no objective evidence of continuing disability or persistent symptoms since service.

The Board denied the veteran's claim to reopen his PTSD service connection due to lack of new and material evidence, as all submitted evidence was considered duplicative or cumulative.

The Board has determined that the veteran's PTSD warrants a 70 percent evaluation, reflecting significant occupational and social impairment.

The Board has remanded the case for further development to determine the propriety of initial evaluations for PTSD.

The Board has determined that the veteran's PTSD does not warrant a disability rating in excess of 30 percent, and his claim for a total compensation rating based on unemployability due to service-connected disabilities is also denied.