The Board has granted the Veteran's claim for service connection for an acquired psychiatric disorder, to include depression, as secondary to his service-connected lumbar spine disability and bilateral lower extremity radiculopathy.
The deciding factor: The VA psychiatrist provided a nexus opinion stating that the Veteran’s depression is most likely caused by or a result of (at least 51% probability) the service-connected disabilities, which exacerbate his mood problems.
- Claimed conditions
- depression, bipolar II disorder, unspecified personality disorder
- How they argued it
- Secondary to another service-connected condition
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- February 25, 2020
- Citation
- 20014321
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 20014321.
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 has remanded the case for additional development, including obtaining in-service psychiatric treatment records and scheduling a VA examination to determine the nature and etiology of any acquired psychiatric disorder.
- Denied
The Veteran's depression was rated at 50 percent prior to July 1, 2016. The Board found that the evidence did not support a higher rating due to occupational and social impairment with reduced reliability and productivity. For TDIU, the Veteran had multiple service-connected disabilities but his education and work experience were sufficient for sedentary or light labor employment.
- Granted
The Veteran's depression was rated at 50 percent prior to September 27, 2017. From September 27, 2017, the rating for depression increased to 70 percent.
- Dismissed
The Veteran's appeals were dismissed due to the death of the appellant. The issues related to service connection for various conditions and disability ratings.
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