The Board found no evidence of in-service combat exposure or a valid PTSD diagnosis based on service stressors. The veteran's dysthymia was granted as secondary to his military service.
The deciding factor: There is insufficient credible supporting evidence that the claimed in-service event actually occurred, and the VA examiner did not identify specific in-service stressors related to PTSD.
- Claimed conditions
- Post-traumatic stress disorder, dysthymia
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- April 21, 2003
- Citation
- 0307552
Veterans Law Judge
Decisions by this judge: 1,467 · Granted: 18% (granted or partly granted, in the vetted decisions on this site)
Judge attribution: 2025 complete; earlier years partial.
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 0307552.
What this means for you
A denial is a starting point, not the end of the road. You can see why this claim fell short — and, if you are still inside the one-year window, the appeal lanes that may remain open to you.
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 decided to remand the claim of service connection for dysthymia due to inadequate medical opinions and the need for a new examination.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board has decided to remand the case due to a lack of recent VA examination, and it is recommended that the Veteran undergoes another examination to assess his current psychiatric disability.
- Granted
The Veteran's service-connected disabilities have rendered him so helpless as to be in need of regular aid and attendance since January 22, 2018. The Board has granted an effective date of January 22, 2018 for SMC based on aid and attendance.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Veteran's discharge from the PCAFC program was remanded due to incomplete file and inadequate medical opinion.
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