The Board has determined that the Veteran's claim for service connection for an acquired psychiatric disorder, to include an antisocial personality disorder, should be remanded due to inadequate examination and opinion regarding all relevant time periods. The examiner is requested to provide opinions on current diagnoses of acquired psychiatric disorders, their relationship to service, and whether any pre-existing conditions were aggravated by service.
The deciding factor: The VA examination and medical opinions provided are inadequate for the entire period of appeal as they do not consider all relevant evidence of record, including additional service records and post-service treatment records that show current diagnoses of depression and anxiety.
- Claimed conditions
- Antisocial Personality Disorder, Depression, Anxiety Disorder
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- November 4, 2019
- Citation
- 19183210
What this means for you
A remand is not a loss. The Board sent the case back for more development — often a new exam or missing records — before making a final decision. Many remands later end in a grant, and the decision spells out exactly what the Board wanted to see.
What you can do next
Related decisions
Other Board decisions on a similar condition or argued the same way.
- Partly granted
The Board granted service connection for multiple myeloma, back disability (secondary to multiple myeloma), and depression, with an effective date of January 26, 2021. The decision also remanded claims related to breast cancer, DEA benefits, and initial ratings.
- Denied
The veteran's bad conduct discharge precludes eligibility for VA benefits, including compensation and healthcare.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board remands the claim for an acquired psychiatric disorder, to include posttraumatic stress disorder, depression, and personality disorder, due to the need for further development of the record.
- Dismissed
The appeal was dismissed due to the death of the Appellant during its pendency.
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