Migraines & headaches decisions — 2001

The Board has determined that the veteran's headaches are due to a head injury sustained in service, and thus grants service connection for these residuals.

The veteran's service connection claims for various conditions, including migraine headaches, COPD, asthma, tussive syncope, fatigue, major depression and PTSD, joint soreness due to an undiagnosed illness, hepatitis C, diarrhea, dental disorders (loss of teeth), and hemorrhoids have been granted. The service connection is determined on the merits for these conditions.

The Board denied the veteran's request for an earlier effective date of August 29, 1996, for his award of nonservice-connected pension benefits. The veteran argued that he was incapacitated and hospitalized prior to this date due to his schizophrenia and other conditions. However, the Board found no evidence supporting this claim and determined that the appropriate effective date should be August 29, 1996.

The Board has granted service connection for a psychiatric disorder and TDIU, finding that the veteran's preexisting psychiatric disorder was aggravated by her military service. The claim of service connection for migraine headaches is remanded for further development.

The veteran's claims for increased ratings and service connection were denied. The veteran's shell fragment wounds of the nose with traumatic synechium and retained foreign bodies are rated at 10 percent, while his shell fragment wounds of the left upper arm, left lateral thorax, and left thigh do not warrant a compensable rating.

The veteran has been employed full-time since October 1993 and has overcome a previous employment handicap. Therefore, she is not eligible for the program of rehabilitation services under Chapter 31.

The Board has confirmed the assignment of an effective date of September 28, 1990 for a 100% rating for schizophrenia with tension headaches and periodic depression. The veteran's claim for an earlier effective date was denied.

The Board found that the veteran's disabilities do not render him unemployable due to his alcohol and substance abuse, which led to periods of unemployment. The veteran was therefore denied a permanent and total disability rating for pension purposes.

The veteran's claims for increased ratings and service connection were denied. The effective date of the rating decision was not addressed.

The veteran's claims for compensation under 38 U.S.C.A. § 1151 are being remanded due to the need for additional examinations and opinions regarding the existence of current disabilities associated with his abdomen, left eye, and extremities, as well as their relationship to VA treatment in April and July 1984.

The Board found that the veteran's service-connected disabilities did not render her unemployable on an ascertainable date prior to September 12, 1997 and denied the claim for an earlier effective date.

The Board denied an increased evaluation for headaches, finding that the veteran's migrainous headaches do not occur very frequently and do not result in severe economic or non-economic inadaptability.

The Board denied the veteran's claims for service connection for hypertension, major affective disorder, depression and/or bipolar disorder, disability of the large and small intestine and/or stomach, undiagnosed illness manifested by urinary frequency and incontinence, and undiagnosed illness manifested by cold flashes. The RO also confirmed the denial of service connection for asthma.

The Board found that there was material improvement in the veteran's service-connected psychoneurotic disorder, specifically while she was employed full-time. As a result, the reduction from a 50 percent evaluation to a 30 percent evaluation for her depressive disorder with tension headaches is denied.

The veteran's PTSD claim was initially granted, but the issue of service connection for headaches remains pending. The rating assigned is 30 percent.

The veteran's service-connected disabilities, including low back strain, hypertension, and residuals of a stroke with dysarthria, are found to be so severe that they prevent him from securing or following substantially gainful employment.

The Board has determined that the veteran's current chronic recurrent subacromial bursitis of the right shoulder with headaches is attributable to service and grants service connection for these conditions.

The veteran's cervical spinal stenosis, status post C3-4 fusion, is rated at 40 percent since September 22, 1999.

The Board denied the veteran's claims of service connection for residuals of a head injury, right hip disorder, and left hip disorder. The claim for an increased rating for bilateral hearing loss was deferred pending further examination.

The Board denied the veteran's claims for service connection for headaches, right wrist pain, and nerve disease as not well grounded. The claim for an increased rating for depression was also denied.