PTSD (post-traumatic stress disorder) decisions — 2013

The Veteran's claimed stressor, which involved being threatened by Vietnamese enemy soldiers in Vietnam in September 1977, was not verified. As a non-combat veteran, the Veteran's lay statements alone are insufficient to establish the occurrence of this alleged stressor. Therefore, service connection for PTSD is denied.

The Veteran's PTSD resulted in occupational and social impairment with reduced reliability and productivity, warranting a higher initial rating of 50 percent.

The Veteran's appeal is remanded for additional development, including obtaining VA treatment records and employment records, as well as a new examination to assess the severity of his PTSD and tinnitus. The effective date for service connection for PTSD will also be determined.

The Board has determined that the Veteran does not have confirmed exposure to herbicides in service, and there is no evidence linking any of his claimed conditions to military service or to any incident therein. As such, service connection for all claims is denied.

The Board has remanded the case due to the need for additional development, including obtaining a VA medical opinion regarding the Veteran's psychiatric conditions and verifying stressor events.

The Board denied the Veteran's claim for service connection for an acquired psychiatric disorder, to include PTSD. The issue was remanded by the Court and returned to the Board.

The Board has remanded the case for additional development, including obtaining VA and SSA records, arranging a VA examination, and considering newly submitted evidence.

The Veteran's appeal was denied across multiple issues, including PTSD, fibromyalgia, pulmonary sarcoidosis with asthma, tendonitis of the left ankle, retropatellar pain syndrome (myxoid degeneration) of both knees, human papilloma virus, carpal tunnel syndrome, and other conditions. The appeals were not granted for any of these issues.

The Veteran's appeal is being remanded for a VA examination to address his PTSD. The case will be readjudicated after the examination.

The Board has ordered additional development to determine the credibility of the Veteran's alleged stressor events and to verify if he served at the DMZ. The case will be remanded for further examination and opinion regarding his psychiatric disabilities.

The Veteran's service-connected PTSD has been rated at 100 percent effective October 1, 2005, due to total occupational and social impairment.

The Board denied service connection for a psychiatric disorder other than PTSD or bipolar disorder, finding that the Veteran's current psychiatric disorders are not etiologically related to his military service.

The Board has remanded the case for a medical opinion regarding whether Alzheimer's dementia and PTSD are related to service or service-connected disabilities, and if so, whether they contributed substantially or materially to the cause of the Veteran's death.

The Veteran's initial ratings for PTSD were denied, and he was not granted a TDIU prior to November 25, 2011.

The Veteran's TDIU claim was denied due to his PTSD disability, but the RO has since granted service connection for additional disabilities including diabetic renal disease with hypertension. The Board finds that further development is needed as there are no opinions addressing whether the Veteran's combined service-connected disabilities render him unemployable.

The Veteran's PTSD has been rated at 50 percent since May 21, 2012. The Board found that the symptoms of his PTSD have caused significant impairment in social and occupational functioning.

The Veteran's appeal for service connection for hepatitis C has been withdrawn. The Board grants the Veteran's claim for service connection for PTSD, finding that his fear of hostile military or terrorist activity during service is sufficient to establish a diagnosis and link between his current PTSD symptoms.

The Veteran's death was not due to any service-connected disability, and the cause of his death (respiratory distress syndrome) is not presumed to be related to exposure to herbicide agents.,The Veteran did not have a total service-connected disability rating at the time of his death.

The Veteran's PTSD is rated at a 30 percent rating since June 13, 2005. The Board finds that the symptoms meet or approximate the criteria for a 30 percent rating under Code 9411.

The Board has granted service connection for PTSD and found that the Veteran's current disability is a direct result of military sexual trauma during service. The issue of entitlement to a compensable rating for bilateral hearing loss is remanded due to new evidence indicating worsening of the condition.