The Veteran's claim to establish service connection for a gastrointestinal disability, claimed as secondary to a service-connected disability, is denied. The Board has reopened the previously-denied claim of major depression with polysubstance abuse and granted it.
The deciding factor: New evidence submitted since the November 2002 rating decision includes a VA examination report indicating that the Veteran's psychiatric symptoms may have been caused by childhood stressors occurring prior to his service, raising the possibility that these symptoms could be related to his gastrointestinal disability.
- Claimed conditions
- Major Depression with Polysubstance Abuse, Gastrointestinal Disability
- How they argued it
- Secondary to another service-connected condition
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- June 15, 2018
- Citation
- 18111231
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 18111231.
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.
- Denied
The Veteran's appeal for higher ratings on multiple conditions, including PTSD, lumbosacral strain, radiculopathy of the lower extremities, gastrointestinal disability, bilateral wrist disabilities, and obstructive sleep apnea, was denied. The appeals were remanded for further action.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board has remanded the Veteran's claims for service connection due to incomplete development of records from Landstuhl Army Hospital and additional consideration of evidence.
- Dismissed
The Veteran's appeals for service connection for PTSD, hypertension, chronic fatigue syndrome, gastrointestinal disability, left knee disability, and insomnia have been dismissed. The Board has also remanded the issues of service connection for a left knee disability and insomnia.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board has remanded the Veteran's claims for service connection due to lack of a VA examiner opinion and incomplete information regarding stressor validation. The issues include PTSD, erectile dysfunction, gastrointestinal disability, and low back disability.
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