PTSD (post-traumatic stress disorder) decisions — 2008

The Board has granted a disability rating of 30 percent for the veteran's anxiety disorder, effective from the date of the decision. The claim for service connection for PTSD is reopened based on new and material evidence.

The veteran's scar of the left frontal scalp was granted a separate 30 percent evaluation. Service connection for PTSD was denied due to lack of credible supporting evidence for claimed stressors.

The veteran's appeal for service connection for hypothyroidism has been withdrawn. The case of the PTSD rating is remanded due to a pending issue.

The veteran's appeal is for a higher initial rating of 30 percent for PTSD, which was initially assigned from June 21, 2005. The Board has ordered remand to obtain additional medical evidence and conduct another VA examination.

The Board denied the veteran's claims for service connection for PTSD and left/right knee disorders due to a lack of current diagnoses, as well as insufficient evidence supporting the claimed stressors. The issues regarding reopening the claims were also denied.

The Board denied an initial disability evaluation in excess of 30 percent for PTSD, finding that the evidence did not support a higher rating.

The veteran's claim for an initial rating higher than 50 percent for PTSD is being remanded due to the need for a new VA examination and additional records.

The Board has determined that the veteran's PTSD is not service-connected as it was not incurred during active duty and there is insufficient credible supporting evidence to substantiate the alleged stressors. The claim for service connection for PTSD is denied.

The Board denied the veteran's claims for an initial rating in excess of 50 percent for PTSD and entitlement to a total disability rating based on individual unemployability. The evidence did not meet the criteria for higher ratings under VA's schedular guidelines.

The VA determined that the appellant does not have a diagnosis of PTSD attributable to his in-service experiences and therefore denied his claim for service connection.

The Board has remanded the veteran's claims due to inadequacies in the May 2006 VA examination and the need for further clarification of diagnoses.

The Board has determined that the veteran's PTSD is causally related to a stressor of seeing men fall overboard and then dying during service, which was not recovered. The claim for service connection for PTSD is granted.

The Board granted effective dates earlier than January 29, 2004 for both the TDIU rating and DEA benefits. The veteran's service-connected disabilities were found to have rendered him unemployable prior to that date.

The Board found that there is no current diagnosis of PTSD related to the veteran's in-service stressor and thus denied his claim for service connection.

The Board denied the veteran's claim for an effective date earlier than July 20, 2004, for the award of a total disability rating based upon individual unemployability (TDIU). The decision found that the veteran did not meet the percentage requirements for consideration for a TDIU prior to July 20, 2004, and that his service-connected disabilities were not sufficient to render him unemployable solely due to these conditions.

The Board has ordered a remand to verify the veteran's claimed stressor of Captain R.R.'s death and to readjudicate his service connection claim for an acquired psychiatric disorder, including PTSD.

The veteran's PTSD has been rated at 30 percent prior to January 9, 2007 and at 50 percent beginning January 9, 2007. The Board found that the symptoms did not warrant a higher rating.

The Board determined that the veteran did not engage in combat with the enemy and therefore his lay testimony alone is insufficient to establish the occurrence of the alleged stressors. The evidence must contain independent statements or records supporting such occurrence. Despite verified in-service stressors, the VA medical opinions found no current diagnosis of PTSD as a result of these stressors.

The Board found that the veteran does not have an acquired psychiatric disorder, to include anxiety or PTSD, due to disease or injury that was incurred in or aggravated by active service. The veteran also does not have restrictive lung disease due to disease or injury that was incurred in or aggravated by active service.

The Board has granted service connection for PTSD and denied service connection for a hernia, respiratory condition, and rhinitis. The veteran's claim for PTSD is supported by medical evidence linking his current symptoms to his military service. However, there is no current diagnosis of or recent treatment for a hernia in the record.