Migraines & headaches decisions — 2021

The Veteran's back disability is rated at 40 percent from October 23, 1992 to November 23, 1992. The Board has granted a TDIU and remanded the issues of rating in excess of 10 percent for a back disability prior to October 23, 1992, and thereafter in excess of 40 percent; initial rating in excess of 20 percent for right lower extremity radiculopathy; and service connection for headaches.

The Board denied service connection for an acquired psychiatric disorder, sleep apnea, and erectile dysfunction. However, it granted service connection for headaches (secondary to hypertension and tinnitus) and bilateral hearing loss. The Veteran's level of hearing loss did not meet the criteria for a disability rating higher than 10 percent.

The Veteran's service-connected disabilities rendered him unemployable from February 11, 2013. The Board found that TDIU on an extraschedular basis is warranted from February 11, 2013, but no earlier. The issue of a higher initial disability evaluation for lumbar strain resulting in multi-level spondylosis/lumbar disc disease prior to November 25, 2019, and in excess of 40 percent thereafter is remanded.

The Veteran's hypertension, right hip condition, left hip condition, obesity, migraine headaches, lumbar spine disability, and lower extremity radiculopathies have not been linked to service or a service-connected disability. As such, the claims for these conditions are denied.,The Veteran's bilateral lower extremities were evaluated separately in this decision.

The Board has determined that the Veteran's claims for initial compensable ratings for post-traumatic headaches and traumatic brain injury should be remanded due to errors in obtaining relevant federal records, clarifying the nature of a community care neurological consult, and considering the ameliorating effects of medication.

The Board has remanded the Veteran's claims for service connection due to duty-to-assist errors. The issues of low back disability, migraine headaches, left knee disability, and right knee disability are all being reviewed again.

The Veteran's claim for service connection to PFB, sinusitis, chronic headache disability, left arm disability, fibromyalgia, and gastrointestinal disability (IBS) is granted. The claims for service connection for a left ankle disability other than psoriatic arthritis, bilateral plantar fasciitis, and tinnitus are remanded.

The Veteran's headaches have been rated at a 30 percent disability rating throughout the entire period on appeal, which is granted. The Board found that the frequency and severity of the Veteran's headaches were commensurate with characteristic prostrating attacks occurring on an average of once a month over the last several months.

The Board denied service connection for an acquired psychiatric disorder, chronic fatigue syndrome, and a headache disorder due to lack of current diagnoses or medical nexus.

The Veteran's claim for service connection for tinnitus is granted, as the evidence is in equipoise regarding whether it was incurred during service.,Service connection for bilateral hearing loss is denied because there is no medical evidence showing a significant threshold shift beyond normal variability while in service.

The Board has decided that the Veteran's claims for increased evaluations and service connection for migraine headaches are remanded to the Agency of Original Jurisdiction (AOJ) for further consideration.

The Board has remanded the case due to insufficient medical opinions regarding whether the Veteran's headaches are proximately due to his service-connected tinnitus.

The Veteran's PTSD resulted in occupational and social impairment with deficiencies in most areas, warranting a rating of 70 percent from November 22, 2013. The appeal is remanded for further evaluation on the issues of increased ratings for various conditions.

The Veteran's service-connected disabilities render him so helpless as to be in need of the regular aid and attendance of another person, resulting in a grant of SMC based on this need. However, higher levels of SMC are available under the law, which requires remand for further adjudication.

The Veteran's sinus disability is granted on a presumptive basis as due to exposure to particulate matter. Other service-connected disabilities are denied or not addressed.

The Veteran's service-connected migraine headaches have been productive of very frequent completely prostrating and prolonged attacks, resulting in severe economic inadaptability. The Board has granted a 50 percent rating for the condition prior to June 15, 2021.

The Board has remanded the case due to the need for additional evidence regarding the Veteran's bilateral hearing loss, specifically audiometric test results from March 18, 2015, May 23, 2015, and October 28, 2015. The Veteran also needs clarification on the type of speech recognition tests used during these evaluations.

The Veteran's service-connected disabilities (migraine headaches, major depressive disorder, sleep apnea, and tinnitus) have been found to be of sufficient severity to prevent him from obtaining or maintaining substantially gainful employment.

The Veteran's TBI residuals and headaches have been granted initial increased ratings, with the TBI rating at 70% prior to December 19, 2013 and headaches rated at 30%. The Veteran also received a grant of TDIU prior to this date.

Service connection has been granted for an acquired psychiatric disability, to include unspecified depressive disorder.,Service connection has also been granted for a bilateral pelvic disability and lumbosacral strain disability. However, service connection is being remanded for headaches/migraines.