The veteran's claim for an increased disability rating for his dysthymic disorder with hysterical features was remanded for additional evidence and a medical opinion to determine if the schizophrenia/schizoaffective disorder is a separate disease entity from the dysthymic disorder.
The deciding factor: The newly-obtained early medical evidence raised the question of whether it is appropriate to consider all of the veteran's psychiatric symptomatology in assigning the appropriate disability rating, or whether accuracy in rating requires distinguishing between symptoms arising from service-connected dysthymia and those arising from a nonservice-connected psychotic disease process.
- Claimed conditions
- dysthymic disorder with hysterical features
- How they argued it
- Secondary to another service-connected condition
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- January 22, 2009
- Citation
- 0902310
What this means for you
A remand is not a loss. The Board sent the case back for more development — often a new exam or missing records — before making a final decision. Many remands later end in a grant, and the decision spells out exactly what the Board wanted to see.
What you can do next
Related decisions
Other Board decisions on a similar condition or argued the same way.
- Remanded (sent back)
The appeal is remanded for additional development, including notice to the veteran and his representative regarding the criteria for evaluating psychiatric disabilities, obtaining records from Social Security Administration, and updating VA treatment records.
- Partly granted
The Board granted service connection for right lower extremity sciatica associated with the Veteran's service-connected lumbosacral spine strain, but remanded claims for service connection for gastroesophageal reflux disease (GERD) and sleep apnea.
- Granted
The Board granted service connection for the cause of the Veteran's death, finding that his lung cancer was related to his service-connected melanoma.
- Partly granted
The Board granted service connection for anxiety but denied it for sleep apnea, finding that the Veteran's sleep apnea was less likely than not related to his active service or service-connected acquired psychiatric condition.
We are not the VA. Veterans’ Rights is an independent resource built for veterans. We are not the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs, not part of the government, and not endorsed by any government agency.
This is general information, not legal advice. For advice about your own situation, talk to a VA-accredited representative — many help for free.