Migraines & headaches decisions — 2004

The Board has remanded the case for further action due to new evidence received from a private physician.

The Board has determined that the veteran's claims for service connection for headaches and left knee injuries must be remanded due to the need for additional development, including obtaining medical opinions regarding the nature of his current disabilities and their relationship to military service.

The Board has granted the appellant's claims for increased ratings for his service-connected muscle contraction type headaches and mild upward gaze restriction of the right eye with diplopia on extreme upward gaze and mild traumatic cataract, effective from November 5, 1991.

The veteran's post concussion syndrome with headaches and anxiety symptoms is currently rated at 30 percent, which the Board finds to be appropriate. The facial scars are found to have been incurred in service.

The veteran's claims for service connection for allergic perioral dermatitis, venous insufficiency manifested by edema, and headaches/migraines have been denied. The case is remanded to determine the nature and etiology of the veteran's headache disorder.

The Board has granted a higher rating of 40 percent for the service-connected cervical strain with degenerative disease, effective from the date of claim in March 1999.

The Board has increased the veteran's rating for residuals of a scalp wound from 10% to 20%, effective October 1999. The right occipital scar is rated as non-compensable.

The Board denied the veteran's claims for service connection and increased ratings, finding no new and material evidence to reopen her claim of post-operative intracranial aneurysm with headaches and organic brain syndrome. The increased rating claims were also denied.

The veteran's service connection claim for a disorder manifested by chronic fatigue, tension headaches, and multiple joints and muscle aching due to an undiagnosed illness is granted. The claim was based on the presumption of service connection for an undiagnosed illness related to service in Southwest Asia.

The Board denied earlier effective dates for the veteran's claims of service connection for hearing loss, headaches, and left airway restriction due to a lack of evidence prior to January 31, 2000.

The Board has determined that new and material evidence has been received to reopen the claim of service connection for headaches. The veteran's back disorder is considered a separate issue, but no specific theory of service connection was provided.

The Board has remanded the veteran's claims for increased ratings due to insufficient evidence and need for further examination.

The veteran's claimed conditions of depressive disorder, dysthymia, adjustment disorder and occipital headaches are not service-connected as they can be attributed to known clinical diagnoses.

The Board denied the veteran's claim for a rating in excess of 10 percent for headaches due to his service-connected right eye disability, finding that the appropriate diagnostic code is DC 8045 (brain disease due to trauma) and not DC 8100 (migraine headaches).

The Board denied the veteran's claims for increased evaluations and service connection for various disabilities, finding that there was no legal entitlement to secondary service connection for headaches.

The Board denied service connection for tinnitus, headaches, hypertension, and sinusitis as the veteran did not have a current diagnosis of these conditions.

The Board denied the veteran's claim for payment or reimbursement of private medical expenses incurred on May 2, 2002, as there was no prior authorization and the treatment did not constitute a medical emergency.

The Board has determined that the veteran abandoned his claims due to a lack of response over nearly seven years, and therefore dismissed them.

The Board is remanding the case for further development due to procedural errors in notification and assistance under the VCAA.

The Board has remanded the claims for service connection for headaches, a cervical spine disorder, a right eye disorder, and a left leg disorder due to additional development of evidence being required.