Migraines & headaches Board decisions

The veteran's PTSD and migraine headaches were found to be disabling, but not at the levels required for a higher rating. The TDIU claim was granted based on her service-connected disabilities preventing her from obtaining or maintaining employment.

The Board has remanded the veteran's claims for a low back disorder and headaches due to insufficient development, including the need for VA examinations.

The Board has denied the veteran's claims for service connection for various conditions, including a neck disorder, headache disorder, heart disorder, chest disorder, hemorrhoids, and bilateral knee condition. The RO found that new and material evidence had not been presented to reopen claims for service connection for bilateral shoulder disorders, bilateral pes planus, and bilateral hallux valgus.

The Board found that the veteran's current headache disorder is not service-connected and denied his claim.

The Board granted service connection for an arachnoid cyst with headaches and blackouts, secondary to a service-connected scalp laceration. The effective date is set at October 2, 1974, the day following separation from active duty.

The Board denied the veteran's claims of service connection for bilateral pes planus, a sleep disorder, and musculoskeletal disabilities of his lower extremities. The appeals for reopening claims regarding headache disorder, low back disability, and psychiatric disability (PTSD) were also denied.

The Board has remanded the case for additional development and/or notification action.

The Board denied service connection for residuals of a head injury including a seizure disorder and also denied reopening the claim for service connection for headaches. The veteran's pre-existing history of headaches was not shown to have been aggravated by service.

The Board has reopened the veteran's claim for service connection for a headache disability due to new and material evidence submitted since the October 1998 RO decision. The VA will seek to obtain all relevant medical records, including those from prior to service, to determine if any current headache disability is related to service.

The Board has determined that the appellant's service-connected disabilities render him unable to secure or follow a substantially gainful occupation, and thus grants a total disability rating for compensation purposes based on individual unemployability.

The Board denied the applications to reopen previously denied claims of service connection for a psychiatric disorder, low back disorder, right and left knee disorders, cluster migraine headaches, and chronic fatigue. The evidence received since the previous decisions was not new and material.

The veteran's back disorder is related to his service-connected left tibia fracture. Impotence is not related to any service-connected condition. The other conditions are either not directly related to service or have no evidence of exposure to known risk factors.

The Board has determined that the veteran's current headaches and hypertension are proximately due to or the result of his service-connected PTSD, granting secondary service connection for both conditions.

The veteran was granted service connection for PTSD, a back disorder, defective hearing, tinnitus, and gastrointestinal disorders as a result of exposure to ionizing radiation. The other issues were not granted.

The veteran's headaches are found to be due to anxiety, a supervening condition. Therefore, service connection for headaches as due to an undiagnosed illness is denied.

The Board denied the veteran's claims for increased ratings for her mechanical low back pain with degenerative joint disease and migraine headaches, finding that the evidence did not support a rating in excess of 20 percent for the low back disorder or a rating in excess of 30 percent for the migraines prior to June 20, 2003, and to a rating in excess of 50 percent thereafter.

The VA has granted a 30 percent evaluation for the veteran's migraine headaches, which have been characterized as prostrating attacks occurring on average once per month over the last several months.

The Board denied the veteran's claims for a higher rating for his service-connected headaches and for a total disability rating based on individual unemployability due to service-connected disabilities. The veteran was awarded a maximum schedular rating of 50 percent for his headaches, but the RO found that this did not result in significant interference with employment beyond what is contemplated by the current rating.

The Board found that the veteran's headaches were neither incurred in nor aggravated by service, and thus denied his claim for service connection.

The Board has reopened the veteran's claim and determined that his current condition is due to an undiagnosed illness resulting from Gulf War service. The veteran's somatoform disorder with dysthymia, along with other symptoms like constipation, diarrhea, joint pain, fatigue, headaches, fluctuation of appetite, apathy, memory loss, and chest pain, are considered part of this undiagnosed illness.