The Veteran asserts that he initially manifested a chronic acquired psychiatric disorder during active service. The Board finds that a VA mental disorders examination is necessary to determine the current nature and etiology of all identified chronic acquired psychiatric disorders.
The deciding factor: The claim requires an opinion on the etiology of any diagnosed psychiatric condition, which necessitates a medical examination.
- Claimed conditions
- depressive disorder, NOS
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- October 26, 2010
- Citation
- 1040132
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 1040132.
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.
- Granted
The Board granted a disability rating of 50 percent for the Veteran's acquired psychiatric disorder, characterized as depressive disorder, effective May 1, 2017.
- Denied
The Board denied an increased rating for depressive disorder and remanded the claims for a higher rating for headache syndrome and TDIU.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board remands the claim for further development, including verification of an in-service stressor and obtaining additional medical opinions.
- Partly granted
The Veteran is granted service connection for migraine headaches secondary to tinnitus, effective April 1, 2021. The claim for an earlier effective date for depressive disorder was denied.
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