Traumatic brain injury (TBI) decisions — 2019

The Board has remanded the issue of service connection for a Traumatic Brain Injury due to new evidence and further examination. The Veteran's TBI is being evaluated based on the merits, without invoking any presumption or secondary theory.

The Veteran's request for a rating in excess of 30 percent for residuals, frostbite, right upper extremity has been denied.,The Veteran's request for a rating in excess of 30 percent for residuals, frostbite, left upper extremity has been denied.,The Veteran's request for a rating in excess of 30 percent for residuals, frostbite, right lower extremity has been denied.,The Veteran's request for a rating in excess of 30 percent for residuals, frostbite, left lower extremity has been denied.

The Veteran's claim for an earlier effective date for service connection of TBI was denied. The February 1969 rating decision implicitly denied the Veteran's claims for residuals of head injury, including TBI.

The Veteran's claims for PTSD, TBI, hernia residuals, bilateral knee conditions, and lower back strain have been remanded. The Veteran also has a pending request to increase his ratings for hearing loss and seborrheic dermatitis, as well as a request for a total disability rating based on individual unemployability (TDIU).

The Veteran's initial rating for TBI is denied, and the Board has remanded to evaluate his migraine headaches and mental disorder (paranoid schizophrenia).

The Board denied service connection for frostbite of the hands as there is no current diagnosis related to the cold exposure event during service.

The Veteran's claim for service connection for a renal disorder has been reopened. The Board also remanded several issues including initial ratings for various conditions such as tibia stress fracture, hypertension, head scar, burn scar of the left wrist and arm, migraine disorder, PTSD with TBI, right tibia stress fracture, and tinnitus.

The Veteran's appeal for an initial rating in excess of 10 percent for traumatic brain injury (TBI) with aphasia has been dismissed due to the appellant and his attorney requesting a withdrawal of the appeal prior to the promulgation of a decision.

The Veteran's claim for service connection for a traumatic brain injury (TBI) has been granted, making the appeal moot.

The Board has remanded the Veteran's claims of service connection for residuals of traumatic brain injury and migraine headaches due to insufficient medical opinions regarding the nature and etiology of these conditions.

The Board has remanded the case due to a need for a new VA examination by an examiner qualified in TBI assessments, as the previous October 2013 VA examiner was not considered qualified.

The Board has determined that the Veteran's claims for service connection for bilateral shoulder disability, neck disability, and traumatic brain injury are denied. The claim for service connection for bilateral hip disability is remanded due to insufficient evidence.

The Veteran's claims for service connection for frostbite residuals to the right and left hands, as well as a higher rating for median and ulnar neuropathy of the left upper extremity prior to February 15, 2017, were denied. The Veteran was granted an initial 40 percent rating for his left hand condition prior to that date.

The Veteran's TBI residuals are rated at 100 percent, and the issue of entitlement to total disability rating based on individual unemployability due to service-connected disabilities is moot.

The Board denied the Veteran's appeal as his substantive appeals were not timely filed, and thus the case was closed.

The Veteran's hypertension is denied as there is no evidence showing it began during service or is related to an in-service injury.,The Veteran's residuals of a traumatic brain injury with memory loss are denied due to lack of evidence of such condition.,The Veteran's diabetes mellitus, type II with erectile dysfunction is rated at 20 percent and the claim for higher ratings remains pending.,The Veteran's peripheral neuropathy of the left upper extremity is not entitled to a rating in excess of 30 percent.,The Veteran's peripheral neuropathy of the right upper extremity is not entitled to a rating in excess of 30 percent.,The Veteran's peripheral neuropathy of the right lower extremity, sciatic nerve is not entitled to a rating in excess of 20 percent.,The Veteran's peripheral neuropathy of the left lower extremity, femoral nerve is not entitled to a rating in excess of 20 percent.,The Veteran's peripheral neuropathy of the left lower extremity, sciatic nerve is not entitled to a rating in excess of 10 percent.

The Veteran's vertigo associated with TBI is rated at 30 percent, and the issue of entitlement to an initial rating in excess of 10 percent for headaches associated with TBI remains pending.,The Veteran's headaches are currently rated as noncompensable (zero percent disabling) prior to September 21, 2016, and 30 percent thereafter. The issue of entitlement to a compensable evaluation from September 21, 2016 is pending.,The issues of entitlement to evaluations in excess of 10 percent for left ankle sprain and right ankle sprain are remanded.,The issue of entitlement to a compensable evaluation for paresthesia of the left side of the face associated with TBI remains pending.,The issue of entitlement to a compensable evaluation for TBI with post-concussive syndrome and visual impairment is also pending.

The Board has remanded the claims for PTSD, hearing loss, TBI, and individual unemployability due to the addition of relevant evidence after the transfer of the case to the Board.

The Veteran's claims for service connection have been denied as new and material evidence has not been received to reopen the previously denied claims.

The Veteran's appeal for a total rating based on individual unemployability (TDIU) due to her service-connected headache disability is remanded. The Board acknowledges the Veteran's service-connected disabilities but finds that they do not meet the criteria for a TDIU under 38 C.F.R. § 4.16(a). However, referral to the Director, Compensation Service, for consideration of an extraschedular TDIU on account of her service-connected headache disability is warranted.