The Veteran's acquired psychiatric condition is granted as secondary to his service-connected orthopedic conditions. Various issues of service connection and disability ratings are also granted or remanded.
The deciding factor: Dr. D.D.'s opinion established a clear link between the Veteran’s service-connected conditions and his depression, meeting the criteria for secondary service connection.
- Claimed conditions
- depression, left cheek disability (epidermal cyst removal), bilateral shoulder disability, heart disability, hypertension, low back disability, right knee osteoarthritis, left knee limitation of extension, radiculopathy of the right lower extremity, radiculopathy of the left lower extremity, bilateral hearing loss
- How they argued it
- Secondary to another service-connected condition
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- April 28, 2021
- Citation
- 21025400
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 21025400.
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.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board has remanded the claims for service connection for hypertension and peripheral neuropathy of the bilateral upper and lower extremities due to insufficient medical opinions regarding their etiology.
- 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.
- Denied
The Board denied the Veteran's claims for service connection for a bilateral shoulder disability and increased ratings for her bilateral knee disabilities, finding no evidence of in-service injury or disease related to these conditions.
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