The Board has granted service connection for PTSD and denied service connection for multiple joint and muscle pain involving the neck, shoulders, and elbows as well as chest cavity pain, both claimed as due to an undiagnosed illness. The Veteran's PTSD was found to be incurred in service, while his other claims were not supported by evidence.
The deciding factor: The VA examiner opined that the Veteran's PTSD symptoms are more likely than not related to his combat experience during service. For the other conditions, there is no current disability and no objective indications of a chronic disability attributable to an undiagnosed illness or medically unexplained multisymptom illness.
- Claimed conditions
- Posttraumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD), Multiple joint and muscle pain involving the neck, shoulders, and elbows, Pain in the chest cavity
- How they argued it
- Not specified
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- April 29, 2009
- Citation
- 0916042
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 0916042.
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.
- Granted
The Veteran's claim for service connection for PTSD is granted as the evidence shows a current diagnosis of PTSD, an in-service stressor, and a medical link between the two.
- Denied
The Veteran's PTSD has been rated at 50% since March 23, 2004. The Board found that a higher rating is not warranted prior to February 15, 2005 due to the severity of his symptoms and their impact on his social and occupational functioning.
- Denied
The Board denied the Veteran's claims for service connection for PTSD and any acquired psychiatric disorder, finding that there was no evidence to support a link between his current mental health conditions and his military service.
- Granted
The Veteran's PTSD resulted in occupational and social impairment with reduced reliability and productivity, warranting a 70% disability rating. The Veteran also met the criteria for a TDIU due to his service-connected disabilities preventing him from securing or following a substantially gainful occupation.
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