Migraines & headaches decisions — 2008

The Board denied service connection for sinusitis, residuals of penile surgery, hemorrhoids, a low back disorder, and headaches as the evidence did not establish a link to the veteran's military service.

The veteran's claims for service connection for sinus bradycardia and hypertension were denied, as there was no evidence of current disabilities. The initial ratings for sinusitis, recurrent headaches, chronic strain of the lumbosacral spine, status post right knee menisectomy, and degenerative joint disease of the right knee were also denied.

The veteran's claims for service connection for PTSD, headaches, seizures, and hypertension are being remanded to the RO/AMC for further development.

The Board denied the veteran's claims for service connection for back pain, depression, hearing loss, tinnitus, joint aches, headaches, fatigue, and sleep problems.

The Board denied service connection for a back disorder and headaches as there was no evidence of chronic residuals at the time of separation, symptoms were not reported until over four decades following separation from service, and there was no competent medical opinion linking the current conditions to active service.

The veteran's migraine headaches are characterized by photophobia, phonophobia, and nausea, and occur approximately once a month. The Board finds that the veteran's disability most closely approximates the criteria for a 30 percent evaluation.

The Board remands the matter for a neurological examiner to provide an opinion on whether there is a nexus between the in-service incident and the veteran's current disorder.

The Board concluded that the veteran's current headaches and residuals of a head injury were not related to his time in service, denying the claim for service connection.

The Board remands the claims for further development and adjudication.

The veteran's dysthymia has been rated at 30 percent since the effective date of service connection, and his headaches have not met criteria for a compensable rating.

The Board denied service connection for a low back disability, degenerative disc disease of the lumbar spine, to include as secondary to the service-connected left knee disability; and also denied service connection for a psychiatric disorder to include as secondary to the service-connected disabilities. The Board also found that there was no evidence of a respiratory or breathing disability, numbness in the arms and legs, headaches, anemia, or any other claimed conditions.

The Board granted service connection for narcolepsy with cataplexy and headaches along with coexisting obstructive sleep apnea syndrome requiring CPAP, finding that the veteran's pre-existing condition was aggravated during active duty.

The Board finds that the preponderance of the evidence is against the veteran's claim for service connection for tinnitus.

The veteran's claim for an initial evaluation greater than 10 percent for post-traumatic headaches, residuals of a head injury, was denied as the medical evidence did not establish that he had multi-infarct dementia associated with brain trauma.

The Board denied the veteran's claims for an earlier effective date for service connection for bilateral hearing loss and for new and material evidence to reopen previously denied claims for arthritis of the left wrist, residuals of a head injury with headaches, and residuals of a hand injury.

The veteran's claim for an increased rating for his service-connected migraine headaches and a TDIU is being remanded for further development, including a new VA examination.

The Board denied initial compensable ratings for bilateral tinea pedis and headaches, granted a 10 percent rating for bilateral pes planus, and assigned a 70 percent rating for post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD).

The veteran's claims for increased ratings for headaches, pelvic disability, thoracic spine DDD, and mechanical low back pain were denied as the evidence did not support higher ratings.

The veteran was granted a 10 percent disability rating for chronic foot pain, but the claims for an increased rating for migraines and service connection for depression were denied.

The Board denied service connection for headaches, neurologic symptoms, neuropsychological symptoms, loss of taste and smell, and kidney problems as there was no medical evidence linking these conditions to any incident of service or an undiagnosed illness.