PTSD (post-traumatic stress disorder) decisions — 2013

The Board has determined that the Veteran's reported stressor is related to his fear of hostile military or terrorist activity, and that it supports a diagnosis of PTSD. As such, the claim for service connection for PTSD is granted.

The Veteran's appeal for higher ratings for PTSD has been withdrawn, and the Board does not have jurisdiction to consider this matter further.

The Veteran withdrew all issues on appeal prior to the Board's decision.

The Veteran's PTSD is currently rated at 50 percent, reflecting occupational and social impairment with reduced reliability and productivity due to symptoms such as flattened affect, depressed mood, chronic sleep impairment, panic attacks more than once a week, impaired short-term memory, and difficulty in establishing effective work and social relationships.

The Veteran's appeal has been withdrawn due to his satisfaction with the last rating decision.

The Veteran's appeal is being remanded for a new VA examination to assess the current nature and severity of his service-connected PTSD, as well as for obtaining additional medical records from SSA and any other relevant sources.

The Board has referred the Veteran's TDIU claim to the Under Secretary for Benefits or Director of Compensation and Pension Service for an extra-schedular evaluation under 38 C.F.R. § 4.16(b) due to his service-connected disabilities, such as PTSD, tinnitus, and bilateral hearing loss.

The Veteran's claim for service connection for an acquired psychiatric disorder, including PTSD, schizophreniform disorder, and major depressive disorder with psychotic features, is being remanded due to the need for additional development of her medical records.

The Veteran's claim of service connection for a psychiatric disorder other than PTSD has been reopened and granted. The Board found that the evidence is sufficient to establish a current diagnosis of depressive and/or mood disorders related to military service, but not PTSD or any other specific psychiatric condition. Service connection was also granted for bilateral hearing loss disability.

The Board has decided to remand the Veteran's claim of entitlement to service connection for hypertension, including as secondary to PTSD and Type II diabetes mellitus, due to a lack of a VA examination or opinion regarding the relationship between his hypertension and his service-connected conditions.

The Veteran's PTSD did not meet the criteria for a 70 percent evaluation prior to August 20, 2010, as his symptoms were less severe than those required for such a rating.

The Board has determined that the Veteran does not have a diagnosis of PTSD related to an in-service stressor and his psychiatric disorders are less likely than not related to any incident in service.

The Veteran's PTSD symptoms prior to October 30, 2012 did not meet the criteria for a disability evaluation in excess of 50 percent. Since October 30, 2012, his PTSD has not met the criteria for a disability evaluation in excess of 70 percent.

The Veteran's claim for service connection for an acquired psychiatric disorder, including PTSD and major depressive disorder, has been granted. His claims for a compensable evaluation for bilateral hearing loss and TDIU have been deferred.

The Board has denied the Veteran's claims for service connection for a head injury, psychiatric disorder, eye disorder, headaches, and drug and alcohol abuse. The claims were previously denied in 1988 due to lack of evidence of residual disability from an in-service incident.

The Veteran's service connection claim for obstructive sleep apnea and an acquired psychiatric disorder, to include PTSD, is granted. The Board finds that the Veteran has a current diagnosis of sleep apnea related to her service-connected disabilities.

The Veteran's claims for PTSD, bilateral hearing loss disability, and tinnitus were all granted. The Board found that the Veteran had no diagnosed PTSD related to service or any other in-service stressor. Bilateral hearing loss and tinnitus were both determined to be attributable to service.

The Veteran's appeal is being remanded to afford him the opportunity to clarify his representation and to schedule a videoconference hearing.

The Veteran's PTSD has resulted in significant occupational and social impairment, warranting a 70 percent evaluation from July 18, 2006.

The Board has recharacterized the Veteran's psychiatric claim as a claim for service connection for PTSD and other acquired psychiatric disorders. The Veteran was not shown to have engaged in combat or experienced an in-service stressor, and his claimed stressors were not corroborated by credible supporting evidence. As such, the Veteran's claims of service connection for PTSD and other acquired psychiatric disorders are denied.