The Board has remanded the case for further development, including obtaining a VA opinion regarding whether the Veteran's unspecified personality disorder was subject to a superimposed disease or injury in service resulting in a current acquired psychiatric disability. The issue of entitlement to service connection for an acquired psychiatric disability other than PTSD remains on appeal.
The deciding factor: The Board found that it is not possible to differentiate what symptoms were attributable to each diagnosis (unspecified neurocognitive disorder, unspecified depressive disorder and unspecified personality disorder, mixed personality features) as the Veteran's symptoms overlapped and intertwined to the extent that they could not be separated without resorting to mere speculation.
- Claimed conditions
- unspecified neurocognitive disorder, unspecified depressive disorder, unspecified personality disorder, mixed personality features
- How they argued it
- Reopened with new and material evidence
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- June 13, 2017
- Citation
- 1721597
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 1721597.
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 Veteran's appeal is remanded due to the need for an addendum opinion regarding the nature and etiology of his unspecified neurocognitive disorder, which was diagnosed after a September 2021 heart surgery. The issues are about service connection on the merits.
- Granted
The Veteran's anxiety and depressive disorders were rated at a 70 percent disability rating effective May 6, 2015.,Effective May 6, 2015, the Veteran was granted an earlier effective date for DEA benefits.
- Granted
The Board has determined that the Veteran's current unspecified depressive disorder is related to his service-connected disabilities, and thus grants service connection for this condition.
- Denied
The Veteran's service-connected unspecified depressive disorder with insomnia disorder is rated at 30 percent, and the Board has determined that this rating is not sufficient to reflect his disability picture.
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