The Board has granted the Veteran's claim of service connection for an acquired psychiatric disorder as secondary to his service-connected disabilities, including degenerative disc disease of the lumbar spine, bilateral pes planus, degenerative arthritis of the knees, and obstructive sleep apnea.
The deciding factor: The opinion provided by the Veteran’s treating psychologist indicated that it is at least as likely than not that the Veteran developed a chronic mood disorder due to chronic pain from his service-connected disabilities of the lower back, feet, knees, and OSA.
- Claimed conditions
- mood disorder, adjustment disorder
- How they argued it
- Secondary to another service-connected condition
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- October 23, 2020
- Citation
- A20015936
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 remands the claim for service connection for an acquired psychiatric disorder to ensure a proper examination and etiology opinion are provided.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board remands the claim for service connection for an acquired psychiatric disorder, to include major depressive disorder, mood disorder, and unspecified depressive disorder due to pre-decisional duty to assist errors.
- Granted
The Board granted service connection for adjustment disorder, finding it was related to fear for his life while flying combat missions during Operation Desert Shield/Storm.
- Denied
The Board denied service connection for a mood disorder as secondary to the service-connected headaches or tinnitus, finding no probative evidence linking the two conditions.
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This is general information, not legal advice. For advice about your own situation, talk to a VA-accredited representative — many help for free.