The Board denied service connection for the Veteran's acquired psychiatric disabilities, finding that his current diagnoses are not related to an in-service injury or disease.
The deciding factor: VA examiners concluded that the Veteran’s unspecified depressive disorder is not at least as likely as not related to an in-service injury, event, or disease due to lack of treatment history and focus on substance abuse issues.
- Claimed conditions
- an unspecified depressive disorder, an alcohol use disorder, a cocaine use disorder
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- May 21, 2018
- Citation
- 18104219
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 18104219.
What this means for you
A denial is a starting point, not the end of the road. You can see why this claim fell short — and, if you are still inside the one-year window, the appeal lanes that may remain open to you.
What you can do next
Related decisions
Other Board decisions on a similar condition or argued the same way.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board has found that the Veteran's service connection claim for an acquired psychiatric disability, including a depressive disorder, should be remanded due to pre-decisional duty-to-assist errors. Specifically, the Board notes that VA treatment records are needed and a formal finding of unavailability must be made if no additional records can be located.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Veteran's claim for service connection for an acquired psychiatric disability, including a depressive disorder, is being remanded due to pre-decisional duty to assist errors. The AOJ must obtain private treatment records and provide addendum opinions addressing the Veteran's lay statements regarding her left hip injury and its impact on her mental health.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board has found that the Veteran may have more than one acquired psychiatric disorder and is remanding for a new medical opinion to determine which, if any, are service-connected.
- Granted
The Veteran's acquired psychiatric disorders, including an unspecified depressive disorder, anxiety disorder, and PTSD, are found to be related to his active duty service.
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