The Board has granted service connection for PTSD and remanded the issue of service connection for HIV. The Veteran's current PTSD is found to be related to his in-service military sexual trauma, while the cause of his HIV status remains unclear due to conflicting medical records.
The deciding factor: The VA examiner opined that it is at least as likely as not (50 percent or greater probability) that the Veteran’s HIV positive status is proximately due to or the result of his in-service military sexual trauma, but this opinion cannot be provided without resorting to speculation due to conflicting medical records.
- Claimed conditions
- Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD), Human Immunodeficiency Virus (HIV)
- How they argued it
- Presumptive (no nexus needed)
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- April 8, 2019
- Citation
- 19126716
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.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board remands the claim for an earlier effective date for service connection of an acquired psychiatric disability, to include PTSD, as it needs a medical opinion addressing the nature and etiology of the condition prior to October 16, 2023.
- Granted
The Veteran is granted special monthly compensation (SMC) based on the need for regular aid and attendance due to his service-connected disabilities.
- Partly granted
The Veteran is granted special monthly compensation (SMC) based on the need for regular aid and attendance of another since September 30, 2020.
- Partly granted
The Board granted service connection for headaches and right hand strain, increased the ratings for PTSD, bilateral hearing loss, dyshidrotic eczema, and hypertension, and denied service connection for Parkinsonism, pes planus/flat feet, GERD, tinea versicolor, allergic rhinitis, and tinnitus. The Board also granted a TDIU.
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