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Denied

The Veteran's HIV and depressive disorder were not found to warrant higher initial ratings as his symptoms did not meet the criteria for a higher rating under the applicable diagnostic codes.

The deciding factor: The Veteran's HIV was not manifested by refractory constitutional symptoms, diarrhea, or pathological weight loss. His depressive disorder did not result in reduced reliability and productivity due to symptoms such as flattened affect, circumstantial speech, disturbances of motivation and mood, panic attacks more than once a week, impairment of short and long-term memory, impaired judgment, difficulty understanding complex commands, or impaired abstract thinking.

Claimed conditions
Human Immunodeficiency Virus (HIV), Depressive Disorder Not Otherwise Specified
How they argued it
Direct service connection
Exposure basis
None
Rating assigned
None in this decision
Decision date
August 26, 2009
Citation
0931989

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 0931989.

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