PTSD (post-traumatic stress disorder) Board decisions

The Veteran was granted a 100% rating for his service-connected Posttraumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) effective September 29, 2009. He also received SMC at the housebound rate due to additional service-connected disabilities.

The Veteran's appeal for an initial rating in excess of 50 percent for PTSD was dismissed because the Veteran withdrew the claim before a decision could be made.

The Board has denied service connection for a right wrist condition and remanded the claims of service connection for an acquired psychiatric disorder, to include depressive disorder, NOS and PTSD with alcoholism, and coronary artery disease (CAD), to include as secondary to an acquired psychiatric disorder. The case is being remanded due to incomplete VA treatment records and the need for additional examinations.

The Veteran's claims for service connection were reopened and granted for PTSD, other specified trauma- and stressor-related disorder. The claims for peripheral neuropathy of the bilateral upper extremities and bilateral hearing loss remain denied.

The Board is remanding the case to obtain updated treatment records and provide a copy of the August 2016 Supplemental Statement of the Case (SSOC) to the Veteran's attorney.

The Board has granted service connection for bilateral hearing loss and denied service connection for PTSD. Service connection for a stomach disability is also granted, but only as secondary to medications related to other service-connected conditions.

The Veteran's PTSD caused occupational and social impairment with deficiencies in most areas, such as work, school, family relations, judgment, thinking and/or mood, but not total occupational and social impairment prior to July 22, 2015. The Board granted a rating of 70 percent for PTSD.

The Veteran's PTSD and TDIU claims are being remanded due to incomplete records for the Vet Center in Parkersburg, West Virginia. The TDIU claim prior to September 26, 2017, is also being referred to VA’s Director of Compensation Service for extraschedular consideration.

The Veteran's representative has withdrawn the appeal for an increased rating of PTSD with alcohol dependence.

The Veteran's claim for a total rating based on individual employability due to service-connected disability (TDIU) is remanded. The Board finds that the evidence supports referral of the Veteran’s PTSD TDIU claim to the Director, Compensation Service, under 38 C.F.R. §4.16(b).

The Board denied service connection for a low back disorder, claiming ankylosing spondylitis, as the evidence did not show it was incurred in or aggravated by service.,Service connection was also denied for depression and/or anxiety (other than PTSD) to include as secondary to a low back disorder.

The Veteran's death was not caused by or related to his service-connected PTSD. The cause of death, pulmonary edema, is not considered a direct result of service.

The Veteran's PTSD symptoms cause occasional decrease in work efficiency and intermittent periods of inability to perform occupational tasks, but generally functioning satisfactorily. The Board denied a higher disability rating for PTSD.

The Veteran's claim of service connection for PTSD has been reopened and granted. Service connection is also granted for acquired psychiatric disorders including anxiety and mood disorders, which are found to have onset in service. The effective date for the grant of service connection for migraine headaches remains June 27, 2014, as requested by the Veteran's representative.

The Veteran's claim for a higher rating for sinusitis is denied as the evidence does not show more than six non-incapacitating episodes of sinusitis per year.,VA has remanded the issues of service connection for back disability, sciatica of the left and right lower extremities, and PTSD. The Veteran will need to provide additional medical records and a supplemental opinion regarding these claims.

The Board has remanded the case for further development due to incomplete records and to consider all relevant evidence.

The Board has determined that the Veteran does not have service connection for loss of vision in the left eye, a skin disability, colon cancer, or an acquired psychiatric disorder (including PTSD and depression) due to lack of evidence linking these conditions to his military service.

The Board has ordered a new examination to clarify the Veteran's current psychiatric diagnoses and assess whether any of them are related to service, including an in-service stressor.

The Board found that the Veteran's current major depressive disorder is not related to his military service and denied his claim for service connection.

The Veteran's claim for service connection for PTSD was denied as there is no credible evidence that the claimed in-service stressors occurred.