Migraines & headaches decisions — 2024

The Board has remanded the Veteran's claims for service connection for headaches and a cervical spine disability due to insufficient evidence regarding whether his service constituted combat status under 38 U.S.C. § 1154(b).

The Veteran's claims for service connection for myofascial pain in chest and neck have been withdrawn.,The Veteran's claim for service connection for a back disability (claimed as myofascial pain in back) has been remanded due to the need for additional medical opinions.

The Board has remanded the claims for service connection due to errors in obtaining clarification of the Veteran's dates of service and for new medical opinions regarding the etiology of her claimed conditions.

The Veteran withdrew all issues on appeal, including those related to lumbar spine strain, cervical spine strain, left foot strain, right foot strain, migraines, hearing loss, anxiety condition, tinnitus, and gastroesophageal reflux disorder (GERD).

The Veteran's claim for service connection for anemia has been denied as there is no current disability.,Service connection has been granted for bilateral dry eye syndrome, status post PRK surgery.

Entitlement to an initial compensable disability rating for migraine headaches prior to February 4, 2021 was denied.,Entitlement to an initial compensable disability rating for sinusitis prior to February 4, 2021 was denied.,Entitlement to an initial compensable disability rating for bilateral ingrown toenails of the great toes prior to February 4, 2021 was denied.

The Veteran's claim for increased ratings of migraine and tension headaches, as well as service connection for bilateral hearing loss, tinnitus, and residuals of head injury (including headaches), was granted. The effective date for the increased rating is June 18, 2018, and the effective date for TDIU prior to January 1, 2018, is also granted.

The Veteran's PTSD with panic disorder, without agoraphobia and major depressive disorder, recurring, moderate is granted a 70 percent rating effective October 12, 2020.,The Veteran's migraine including migraine variants is granted a 30 percent rating effective March 4, 2021.

The Board has decided to remand the claims for anxiety/depression, bradycardia, hearing loss, left knee disability, low back disability, migraines, right ankle disability, and tinnitus due to a pre-decisional duty to assist error. The AOJ should provide an examination for the Appellant's bradycardia.

The Veteran's posttraumatic headaches were reduced from a 30 percent rating to noncompensable, but the 30 percent rating was restored. The VA also granted an increased rating of 50 percent for his posttraumatic headaches effective September 13, 2022.

The Veteran's tension headaches are rated at 50 percent, effective from the date of the decision. The Veteran's cervical disc herniation is granted a 20 percent rating until October 7, 2014.

The Veteran's current migraine headaches are found to be related to his service, specifically the toxic exposure risk activities he participated in during deployment. The Board has granted service connection for this condition.

The Board has granted service connection for migraine headaches and gastroesophageal reflux disease (GERD), finding that these conditions are at least as likely as not related to the Veteran's service-connected obstructive sleep apnea.,Service connection is established for both migraine headaches and GERD, with the Board concluding that they are secondary to the Veteran's service-connected obstructive sleep apnea.

The Veteran's appeal for an increase in the disability evaluation for residuals of left wrist ganglion cyst is denied.,An initial disability evaluation of 50 percent for migraine headaches is granted, and a higher evaluation of 50 percent is also granted. The appeal for an increased evaluation for migraine headaches is granted.,The Veteran's appeal for an increase in the disability evaluation for migraine headaches remains denied.,The Veteran's appeal for an increase in the disability evaluation for left forearm scarring status post stab wound is denied, and a compensable evaluation for superficial linear scars of the left forearm is also denied.,The Veteran's appeal for TDIU is remanded to determine if he qualifies for extraschedular TDIU based on his service-connected disabilities.

The Board has denied service connection for bronchitis, headaches, right shoulder disability, dermatitis, dry eye syndrome, kidney stones, and pharyngitis. The Veteran's claims are remanded due to potential exposure to toxic substances during service.

The Veteran's migraine headaches are rated at a 30 percent since February 11, 2016. The Board found that the Veteran experienced characteristic prostrating attacks of headache pain on average once per month.

The Veteran's claims for service connection for sleep apnea and migraines (chronic headaches) were denied in August 2016 and January 2018, respectively. The Veteran did not file a timely Notice of Disagreement within one year of these decisions, leading to their finality. As the VA Form 10182 was filed after this deadline, the issues are dismissed.

The Veteran's GERD and migraine headaches have been granted service connection, with the GERD being secondary to his acquired psychiatric disorder. The rating for migraine headaches has also been increased to 30 percent.

The Veteran's tension headaches are rated at a 50% effective December 27, 2017.,He is also granted TDIU based on his service-connected disabilities.

The Veteran's headaches are granted as aggravated by service-connected tinnitus. Service connection for allergic rhinitis and sinusitis is denied.