The Board has determined that the claimant's preexisting psychiatric disability, diagnosed as chronic undifferentiated schizophrenia, was not aggravated during his brief period of active service. Therefore, he is not entitled to service connection for this condition.
The deciding factor: The veteran's preexisting psychiatric disability was clearly and unmistakably present prior to service entry, rebutting the presumption of soundness at entry. The claimant did not show any increase in severity during his brief period of active duty.
- Claimed conditions
- schizophrenia, chronic undifferentiated schizophrenia, atypical bipolar disorder, schizoaffective disorder, alcohol dependence
- How they argued it
- Aggravation of a pre-existing condition
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- March 4, 2002
- Citation
- 0202081
This is a plain-language summary generated by AI from a public Board of Veterans’ Appeals decision. It can contain errors — always verify against the original. Look up the original decision on VA.gov (opens in a new tab) using citation 0202081.
What this means for you
A grant means the Board agreed the veteran was entitled to the benefit. Decisions like this show the kind of evidence and arguments that tend to succeed for claims like it.
What you can do next
Related decisions
Other Board decisions on a similar condition or argued the same way.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board has remanded the case for additional development, including obtaining in-service psychiatric treatment records and scheduling a VA examination to determine the nature and etiology of any acquired psychiatric disorder.
- Granted
The Veteran's schizophrenia is rated at 70 percent, indicating significant impairment in work and social functioning.
- Dismissed
The Board dismissed the claims for an effective date prior to August 18, 2016, for a 100 percent disability rating for schizophrenia and for spousal SMC for aid and attendance. The Veteran's claim was erroneously adjudicated by the AOJ and constitutes a free-standing earlier effective date claim.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Veteran's service connection claim for an acquired psychiatric disorder, including PTSD, schizoaffective disorder, and neurocognitive disorder is remanded due to a failure to provide a VA examination addressing whether the pre-existing psychiatric disorder was aggravated during service.
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