PTSD (post-traumatic stress disorder) decisions — 2009

The Board has remanded the Veteran's claims for service connection for migraine headaches and PTSD due to incomplete development of evidence, including obtaining records from his railroad employer and seeking verification of in-service stressors.

The Veteran's PTSD is manifested by symptoms of disturbance of mood, difficulty in establishing and maintaining effective work and social relationships, sleep disturbance, flashbacks, uncontrollable crying, and panic attacks. The Board finds the evidence to be in equipoise and grants a disability rating of 50 percent for PTSD.

The Veteran's appeal concerning service connection for irritable bowel syndrome (IBS) has been withdrawn. The Board is remanding the issue of entitlement to an initial increased rating for posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD).

The Veteran's PTSD is manifested by occupational and social impairment with deficiencies in most areas, such as work, school, family relations, and mood without total occupational and social impairment. The schedular criteria for a disability rating of 70 percent for PTSD have been met.

The Board has determined that the Veteran does not have PTSD and therefore denied his claim for service connection.

The Veteran died from a suicide due to PTSD. The Board is remanding the case for further investigation of the Veteran's exposure to combat in Vietnam and for an opinion on whether his PTSD is service-connected.

The Board has determined that the Veteran's PTSD is attributable to his period of active service and grants the claim for service connection.

The Board has decided to remand the case for a hearing before a member of the Board at the local RO in New Orleans, Louisiana.

The Veteran's appeal for an initial rating in excess of 50 percent for PTSD and for an effective date earlier than August 17, 2006, for the grant of service connection for PTSD was denied. The claim for TDIU due to service-connected disability is also addressed.

The Board has reopened the claims for service connection for hypertension and PTSD, but denied the claim for an initial evaluation in excess of 20 percent for diabetes mellitus. The Veteran's hypertension is not related to his service or a service-connected disability. His diabetes mellitus is currently rated at 20 percent.

The Veteran's PTSD is currently rated at 70 percent, effective from August 18, 2008. The Board has granted a higher initial rating for his service-connected PTSD.

The Veteran's PTSD has been productive of occupational and social impairment, with deficiencies in most areas such as work, school, family relations, judgment, thinking or mood. The Board finds that the assigned 30 percent initial evaluation is not adequate due to evidence of flattened affect and disturbances of mood but no other significant symptoms warranting a higher rating.

The Veteran's PTSD was initially rated at 30 percent prior to October 11, 2004 and increased to 50 percent effective April 24, 2000. The Board denied an initial rating in excess of 50 percent for PTSD from March 17, 2004 to October 4, 2004, but granted a 70 percent evaluation effective March 17, 2004.

The Veteran's claims for PTSD and cardiomyopathy were denied as there is insufficient evidence to support a diagnosis of PTSD, and the Veteran's cardiomyopathy was not found to be related to his service-connected diabetes mellitus.

The Veteran's PTSD is currently rated at 30 percent, which reflects occupational and social impairment with occasional decrease in work efficiency and intermittent periods of inability to perform tasks.,For the lumbar spine disability, a rating higher than 10 percent is not warranted due to limitation of motion. The combined range of motion exceeds 120 degrees, indicating no significant loss of function.,The Veteran's left shoulder disability is currently rated at 10 percent and is productive of painful, limited motion.

The Veteran's appeal has been withdrawn, and the Board is dismissing the case.

The Veteran's PTSD is rated at 70 percent, the highest available rating under the VA Schedule for Rating Disabilities. The Board found that his disability picture did not warrant referral for extra-schedular consideration.

The Veteran's claims for service connection for posttraumatic stress disorder and a compensable rating for malaria were denied. The Board found that there was no evidence of active or relapsed malaria, and the Veteran did not meet the criteria for posttraumatic stress disorder.

The Veteran's appeal is being remanded due to the need for a new VA examination and compliance with VCAA requirements.

The Board finds that the Veteran's right ear sensorineural hearing loss is likely due to noise trauma incurred during military service and grants service connection for this condition. The chronic bronchitis claim is denied as there is no causal link between the Veteran's rare episodes of bronchitis and any remote incident of service. The mechanical low back strain claim is also denied, with no causal link established. Lastly, the PTSD claim is denied due to lack of a current diagnosis.