The Veteran's claim for service connection for major depressive disorder is granted. The claim for PTSD is denied, and the claims for residuals of a left shoulder injury, tinnitus, and bilateral hearing loss are remanded.
The deciding factor: The VA examiner found no evidence that the Veteran’s current symptoms meet the DSM-IV or DSM-V criteria for PTSD, thus denying service connection for PTSD. The claim for major depressive disorder was granted as there is substantial evidence of inservice symptoms related to MDD and an adequate positive nexus between the condition and active duty.
- Claimed conditions
- major depressive disorder, posttraumatic stress disorder, residuals of a left shoulder injury, tinnitus, bilateral hearing loss
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- September 19, 2019
- Citation
- 19172889
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 19172889.
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.
- Dismissed
The Veteran's appeal for service connection of bilateral hearing loss and a ruptured right ear drum was dismissed due to the death of the Veteran.
- Denied
The Veteran's claim for specially-adapted housing assistance and a special home adaptation grant was denied because he does not meet the criteria for either benefit based on his service-connected disabilities.
- Denied
The Board found that the Veteran's bilateral hearing loss was noted upon entry into active duty service and did not increase in severity during service. Therefore, it denied his claim for service connection.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board has remanded the claims for service connection for hearing loss, tinnitus, and an acquired psychiatric disorder due to incomplete medical records and need for further examination.
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