The Board remands the claims for service connection for a psychiatric disorder, to include insomnia and an anxiety disorder, secondary to service-connected tinnitus, and vertigo, as the AOJ failed to obtain a proper medical examination and opinion in this case.
The deciding factor: The VA examinations were found inadequate due to lack of detailed analysis and discussion of the Veteran's symptoms and reports, and failure to provide an aggravation opinion for secondary service connection claims.
- Claimed conditions
- Psychiatric disorder, Insomnia, Anxiety disorder, Vertigo
- How they argued it
- Secondary to another service-connected condition
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- May 20, 2025
- Citation
- A25045326
What this means for you
A remand is not a loss. The Board sent the case back for more development — often a new exam or missing records — before making a final decision. Many remands later end in a grant, and the decision spells out exactly what the Board wanted to see.
What you can do next
Related decisions
Other Board decisions on a similar condition or argued the same way.
- Denied
The Board denied service connection for insomnia, fatigue, gallstones, varicose veins, anemia, colitis, and PTSD due to a lack of evidence supporting the claims.
- Partly granted
The Board granted a total disability rating based on individual unemployability (TDIU) but denied service connection for PTSD and a higher rating for the unspecified trauma and stressor related disorder/major depressive disorder/insomnia.
- Partly granted
The Board granted service connection for lumbar spine disability, as secondary to the Veteran's service-connected left foot crush injury, and sciatic radiculopathy of both lower extremities, also secondary to the newly service-connected lumbar spine disability. The Board denied an initial rating in excess of 70 percent for depressive disorder with unspecified anxiety disorder and a compensable rating for allergic rhinitis.
- Partly granted
The Board granted service connection for a separate 50 percent initial rating for insomnia as secondary to tinnitus, and denied an increased rating for tinnitus. The Board also granted service connection for headache disability, low back disability, left lower extremity radiculopathy, cervical spine disability, and right upper extremity radiculopathy.
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