The Veteran's major depressive disorder is granted secondary to his service-connected post-traumatic stress disorder. The claim for anxiety as a symptom of PTSD is denied.
The deciding factor: The August 2019 VA examination and the August 2015 letter from Dr. K.S.P. support the grant of secondary service connection for major depressive disorder, attributing it to the Veteran's combat trauma and overlapping symptoms with PTSD.
- Claimed conditions
- Major Depressive Disorder, Anxiety
- How they argued it
- Secondary to another service-connected condition
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- December 5, 2019
- Citation
- 19191571
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 19191571.
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.
- Granted
The Veteran was granted a disability rating of 70 percent for posttraumatic stress disorder and major depressive disorder, effective October 24, 2017. The Board also granted a total disability rating based on individual unemployability due to service-connected disabilities.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board remands the claim for service connection for an acquired psychiatric disability due to the need for a more comprehensive medical examination and opinion.
- Partly granted
The Board granted service connection for a heart disability, to include coronary artery disease (CAD), as secondary to the Veteran's anxiety and assigned a 70 percent rating from April 29, 2025. The Board also granted an initial 30 percent rating prior to that date.
- Partly granted
The Board denied service connection for bilateral hearing loss and tinnitus, while remanding claims for depression, anxiety, sleep disorder, right knee strain, left knee strain, and lumbar spine strain.
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