Citation Nr: 18145635 Decision Date: 10/30/18 Archive Date: 10/29/18 DOCKET NO. 15-18 698 DATE: October 30, 2018 ORDER Service connection for an acquired psychiatric disorder, to include posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD), is granted. FINDING OF FACT The Veteran’s currently manifested acquired psychiatric disorders, to include anxiety disorder not otherwise specified (NOS) and PTSD, are related to combat experiences in Vietnam. CONCLUSION OF LAW The criteria for service connection for an acquired psychiatric disorder, to include PTSD, have been met. 38 U.S.C. §§ 1110, 5107; 38 C.F.R. § 3.304(f). REASONS AND BASES FOR FINDING AND CONCLUSION The Veteran served on active duty from September 1960 to March 1961 and from April 1964 to September 1971. He served in Vietnam from March 1967 to October 1968. He was awarded two Bronze Star Medals with V device, a Combat Infantry Badge, the Purple Heart Medal, and the Vietnam Campaign Medal. The Veteran presented sworn testimony in support of his appeal during an October 2018 hearing held at the RO before the undersigned Veterans Law Judge. This decision is being made under the One Touch program, based upon review of the entire claims file and the undersigned’s recollection of the hearing testimony. A transcript of the hearing will be associated with the claims file at a later time. The Veteran is seeking service connection for PTSD related to his combat experiences in Vietnam. To establish a right to compensation for a present disability on a direct basis, a Veteran must show: “(1) the existence of a present disability; (2) in-service incurrence or aggravation of a disease or injury; and (3) a causal relationship between the present disability and the disease or injury incurred or aggravated during service.” 38 U.S.C. § 1110; Shedden v. Principi, 381 F.3d 1163, 1167 (Fed. Cir. 2004). Service connection for PTSD specifically requires 1) medical evidence diagnosing the condition in accordance with 38 C.F.R. § 4.125(a); 2) a link, established by medical evidence, between current symptoms and an in-service stressor; and 3) credible supporting evidence that the claimed inservice stressor occurred. 38 C.F.R. § 3.304(f). All three requirements must be satisfied for an award of service connection to be implemented. The evidence of record satisfies all three of the service connection criteria. The Veteran’s VA treatment records contain multiple diagnoses of PTSD, with the earliest being in March 2011. The linkage is also provided by his VA mental health caregivers, with a June 2011 physician note reflecting the determination that his PTSD was Vietnam-related. Subsequent physicians have confirmed the diagnosis and the linkage. The Veteran’s inservice stressors are confirmed by his medals and decorations, as well as by his own credible hearing testimony and written statements. A May 2011 VA examination found that the Veteran did not meet the criteria for PTSD, but provided a diagnosis of anxiety disorder (NOS) and commented that the Veteran “requires treatment of symptoms of anxiety triggered by memories of combat in Vietnam to prevent escalation of symptoms.” The examiner also identified combat exposure to Vietnam in the Axis IV assessment which represents an ‘etiologically significant psychosocial stressor” to the diagnosis of anxiety disorder. See Hernandez-Toyens v. West, 11 Vet. App. 379, 381-82 (1998). The evidence is clear that the Veteran’s currently manifested psychiatric disorder is attributable to his combat service in Vietnam although there is some diagnostic disagreement among examiners as to the appropriate diagnosis. Resolving reasonable doubt in favor of the Veteran, the Board finds that the criteria for establishing entitlement to service connection for an acquired psychiatric disorder, to include anxiety disorder NOS and PTSD, have been met. See Wise v. Shinseki, 26 Vet. App. 517, 531 (2014) (“By requiring only an ‘approximate balance of positive and negative evidence’..., the nation, ‘in recognition of our debt to our veterans,’ has ‘taken upon itself the risk of error’ in awarding... benefits.”) T. MAINELLI Veterans Law Judge Board of Veterans’ Appeals ATTORNEY FOR THE BOARD Heather J. Harter