The Board denied service connection for an acquired psychiatric disorder (claimed as a 'social adjustment disorder') including PTSD, bilateral cataracts, photophobia, and a left elbow condition. The claim was also remanded for further evaluation of service connection for melanoma.,Service connection was not granted for any of the conditions due to lack of evidence supporting their onset or causation during military service.
The deciding factor: The Board found that there was no current diagnosis of PTSD under DSM-5 criteria and no other psychiatric disorder caused by military stressors. The Veteran's STRs did not show a diagnosis of PTSD, and his mental health providers consistently found no evidence of occupational impairment from mental health symptoms.
- Claimed conditions
- Acquired psychiatric disorder (claimed as social adjustment disorder), Bilateral cataracts, Photophobia, Left elbow condition
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- August 21, 2024
- Citation
- A24048834
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 A24048834.
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Related decisions
Other Board decisions on a similar condition or argued the same way.
- Denied
The Board has determined that the Veteran's bilateral eye disability, including cataracts and a choroidal nevus affecting the left eye, is not attributable to active military service.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Veteran's appeal is remanded due to pre-decisional duty to assist errors, including inadequate VA examinations and ineffective assignment of an effective date. A new VA examination is required to assess the current severity of his service-connected bilateral dry eye syndrome and cataracts, with a focus on whether a separate compensable rating for dry eye syndrome is warranted.
- Denied
The Board denied service connection for bilateral cataracts and status-post eye surgery, finding that the conditions are not related to service or in-service exposures.
- Granted
The Board granted service connection for bilateral hearing loss, arthritis of the cervical spine, cervical radiculopathy of the left arm, back disability, left elbow condition, left shoulder condition, left wrist condition, left hand condition, hypertension, and an initial rating of 10 percent for coronary arteriosclerosis prior to September 24, 2024.
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