The Board denied the Veteran's claim of service connection for a cognitive and/or acquired psychiatric disorder, finding that there was no evidence linking his current bipolar disorder, type II, to disease or injury in service. The Board also found insufficient evidence to support other diagnoses such as major depression/depressive disorder, adjustment disorder, anxiety disorder, PTSD, or ADHD.
The deciding factor: The Board determined the Veteran's current bipolar disorder, type II, is not linked to a disease or injury in service due to conflicting expert opinions and lack of definitive studies linking chemical exposure to bipolar disorder development.
- Claimed conditions
- bipolar disorder, type II, major depression/depressive disorder, adjustment disorder, anxiety disorder, post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD)
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- October 18, 2018
- Citation
- 18143212
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 18143212.
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 remands the claim for service connection for an acquired psychiatric disorder to ensure a proper examination and etiology opinion are provided.
- Granted
The Board granted service connection for an acquired psychiatric disorder, to include unspecified depressive disorder with social anxiety disorder and PTSD, resolving reasonable doubt in the Veteran's favor.
- Partly granted
The Board denied service connection for major depressive disorder, secondary to tinnitus and dismissed the appeal regarding an initial compensable rating for bilateral hearing loss. The claim for adjustment disorder was remanded.
- Partly granted
The Board granted an effective date of December 12, 2023, for a 50 percent evaluation of bipolar disorder and remanded the other issues for further development.
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