The Board denied service connection for an acquired psychiatric disorder, including PTSD, and granted service connection for tinnitus. The Veteran's claim for PTSD was not supported by medical evidence meeting DSM-5 criteria, and his major depressive disorder is not related to service. Service connection for tinnitus was granted based on the Veteran's credible reports of in-service acoustic trauma.
The deciding factor: The Board found that there was no current diagnosis of PTSD or a link between the Veteran's mental health conditions and service, including his Vietnam experience. The examiner opined that the Veteran’s symptoms were not related to service due to lack of evidence of pre-existing psychiatric problems at entrance and insufficient evidence for a formal diagnosis.
- Claimed conditions
- Acquired psychiatric disorder (to include PTSD), Major depressive disorder
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating
- Not verified here — check the original decision
- Decision date
- June 25, 2019
- Citation
- 19148988
Veterans Law Judge
Decisions by this judge: 1,886 · Granted: 24% (granted or partly granted, in the indexed decisions on this site)
Judge attribution: 2025 complete; earlier years partial.
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. Read the original VA decision (opens in a new tab) using citation 19148988.
What this means for you
A final Board denial may be appealed to the U.S. Court of Appeals for Veterans Claims, generally within 120 days of the Board mailing date. A Supplemental Claim with new and relevant evidence is a separate option. Another Higher-Level Review of the Board decision is not available. Check your own notice: this historical decision does not set your deadline.
What you can do next
Use your own notice and decision stage. A remanded issue is not a final court-appealable denial. VA review guidance and CAVC filing instructions (U.S. federal; reviewed October 7, 2026).
Related decisions
Other Board decisions on a similar condition or argued the same way.
- Whole decision: Denied
The Veteran's service-connected major depressive disorder does not render him in need of regular aid and attendance or confined to his home, thus SMC based on housebound status and/or need for regular aid and attendance is denied.
- Whole decision: Granted
The Veteran is granted special monthly compensation (SMC) at the (o) rate and SMC at the (r)(2) rate, effective January 19, 2025. The decision finds that the Veteran's service-connected conditions warrant these awards due to his need for aid and attendance.
- Whole decision: Granted
The Board has granted service connection for the Veteran's acquired psychiatric disorder, including major depressive disorder, as secondary to his already service-connected hearing loss and tinnitus.
- Whole decision: Granted
The Board has granted service connection for major depressive disorder, finding that the Veteran's current diagnosis is related to his in-service harassment. Service connection was denied for a binge eating disorder as there is no evidence of such a condition.
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