The veteran's claim for service connection for an undiagnosed illness manifested by chest pain, heart palpitations, dizziness and lethargy is denied. The veteran's claim for a higher initial rating for his panic disorder and major depressive disorder with alcohol dependence is also denied.
The deciding factor: The symptoms of chest pain, heart palpitations, dizziness and lethargy are attributed to the veteran's service-connected panic disorder, which already has been granted. For the psychiatric disability, the evidence does not meet the criteria for a higher initial rating than 30 percent.
- Claimed conditions
- undiagnosed illness manifested by chest pain, heart palpitations, dizziness and lethargy, panic disorder, major depressive disorder with alcohol dependence
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- June 5, 2006
- Citation
- 0616282
Veterans Law Judge
Decisions by this judge: 1,325 · Granted: 31% (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 0616282.
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 case due to pre-decisional errors in obtaining medical opinions and private treatment records, which are necessary for a proper determination of service connection for panic disorder.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board has remanded the claims for service connection due to incomplete medical opinions and a need for additional evidence. The Veteran's anxiety and panic disorder are being considered, as well as her personality disorder.
- Granted
The Board has granted service connection for an acquired psychiatric disorder, including conversion disorder with attacks or seizures, unspecified depressive and anxiety disorders. The Veteran's conditions are related to his military service.
- Granted
The Board has granted service connection for a psychiatric disorder, including anxiety and panic disorder, finding that the Veteran's current condition is related to his in-service experiences.
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