PTSD (post-traumatic stress disorder) decisions — 2018

The Veteran's appeal has been withdrawn and the case is dismissed due to the Veteran's request for withdrawal.

The Veteran's PTSD claim has been withdrawn.,Prior to January 15, 2015, the low back disability warranted a rating of 10 percent. From January 15, 2015 to December 16, 2015, it warranted a rating of 20 percent. Since then, it has not met the criteria for a higher rating.,Since January 15, 2015, the right lower extremity lumbar radiculopathy has been rated at 20 percent.,Bilateral hearing loss does not meet the criteria for a compensable rating.,Hypertension has not met the criteria for a higher rating.,Residual scars from basal cell epithelioma have warranted a 30 percent rating since March 6, 2013.,The Veteran is unable to secure or follow substantially gainful employment due to his service-connected disabilities.

The Veteran's appeal is being remanded for additional development, including obtaining outstanding records and readjudicating the claims based on a review of all evidence.

The Board found that the Veteran's service-connected conditions did not cause or contribute to his death, and concluded that his PTSD did not substantially or materially contribute to his death. The Board also noted that there was no evidence of suicide attempts related to PTSD.

The Board has determined that remand is necessary due to the need to verify the Veteran's claimed stressors for his PTSD claim and to obtain a VA examination to determine if he currently has a duodenal ulcer or sleep disturbances.

The Veteran's claim for an increased rating for PTSD is being remanded due to the need for a new VA examination to assess the current severity of her service-connected PTSD.

The VA determined that the Veteran does not have a diagnosed condition of PTSD, and thus denied his claim for service connection.

The Veteran's appeal is remanded for additional development, including obtaining SSA records and a VA examination to assess the impact of his service-connected disabilities on his employability.

The Board has determined that the Veteran's diagnosed other specified trauma-and-stressor-related disorder is etiologically related to a motor vehicle accident in service, and thus grants service connection for this condition.

The Veteran's claim for service connection for hearing loss is denied as there is no current evidence of a hearing disability meeting VA criteria.,The effective dates for the grants of service connection for PTSD, GERD, and tinnitus are both April 22, 2013, which is one year prior to the date the claim was received.,The Veteran's service-connected disabilities do not meet or approximate the criteria for a disability rating higher than 70 percent for PTSD or a disability rating greater than 10 percent for GERD. The Veteran does not have total occupational and social impairment due to his PTSD, nor has he demonstrated symptom combinations productive of considerable or severe impairment of health due to his GERD.,The Veteran's service-connected disabilities are rated 90 percent disabling and prevent him from obtaining and retaining gainful employment for which he would otherwise be qualified. Therefore, the criteria for a TDIU have been met.

The Veteran's appeal for higher ratings for PTSD and TDIU was denied. The Board found that the evidence did not support an extraschedular rating prior to January 28, 2010.

The Veteran's PTSD and major depression have resulted in significant occupational and social impairment, warranting a 70 percent rating throughout the appeal period.

The Veteran's PTSD has been rated at 70 percent since August 2, 2002. The Board found that the Veteran's symptoms have resulted in occupational and social impairment with reduced reliability and productivity due to symptoms such as suicidal and homicidal ideations, difficulty understanding complex commands, impaired judgment, and disturbances of motivation and mood.

The Veteran's claim for an initial compensable rating for bilateral hearing loss and a TDIU prior to September 8, 2008 was denied. The Board found that the evidence did not meet the criteria for a compensable rating for hearing loss or entitlement to a TDIU due to service-connected disabilities.

The Board has determined that a new VA examination is necessary due to the inadequacy of an earlier medical opinion. The Veteran's claim for service connection for his psychiatric disorders will be remanded for further evaluation.

The Board has remanded the Veteran's claims for additional development due to new evidence submitted by the Veteran and VA treatment records.

The Veteran's appeal is being remanded for further development and compliance with due process procedures. The issues on appeal include the rating of PTSD prior to February 27, 2014, a higher rating after that date, and TDIU prior to February 27, 2014.

The Board has determined that the Veteran's hypertension is related to his service-connected PTSD and therefore grants service connection for hypertension.

The Veteran's PTSD has been rated at 70 percent since the appeal period began, and there is no evidence of total social or occupational impairment.,The Veteran was not found to be unemployable prior to September 9, 2015. She had full-time employment with Alpha Plastics until her assignment ended.

The Board found that the Veteran's current back disability is not related to service, and denied his claim for service connection.,The Veteran was granted nonservice-connected pension benefits due to over 90 days of active wartime service and permanent total disability.