The Board has determined that the Veteran's acquired psychiatric disorder is most appropriately diagnosed as a personality disorder, which cannot be service connected due to its congenital nature. Therefore, the claim for service connection is denied.
The deciding factor: The VA examiners concluded that the Veteran's sole mental health diagnosis throughout the period on appeal was Other Specified Personality Disorder, Cluster B traits, and this condition is not considered a disease or injury for purposes of service connection.
- Claimed conditions
- Personality Disorder
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- June 30, 2022
- Citation
- 22037667
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 22037667.
What this means for you
A denial is a starting point, not the end of the road. You can see why this claim fell short — and, if you are still inside the one-year window, the appeal lanes that may remain open to you.
What you can do next
Related decisions
Other Board decisions on a similar condition or argued the same way.
- Denied
The Veteran's claim for an earlier effective date and increased rating for other specified trauma-related disorder was denied. The Board found that the May 1974 denial of service connection for a personality disorder did not address a reasonable raised claim for depression, which is related to the same period.
- Granted
The Veteran's claim for PTSD has been granted, and the claims for personality disorder and panic/anxiety disorder have been remanded due to new evidence.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Veteran's appeal is remanded due to the hearing being cancelled and a need for additional clarification of his mental health condition. A VA examination is required to determine the nature and etiology of any diagnosed conditions, including PTSD.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board has remanded the case due to a duty-to-assist error, requiring further examination and opinion regarding whether any diagnosed psychiatric disorder is related to service or superimposed upon his personality disorder.
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