Traumatic brain injury (TBI) decisions — 2024

The Board has denied service connection for PTSD due to the lack of corroborated in-service stressor. The TBI claim is remanded as there is insufficient evidence to determine if the Veteran's current TBI and its residuals are related to his military service.

The Veteran's service-connected frostbite residuals of the right upper, right lower, and left lower extremities have been granted with effective dates prior to December 29, 2008. Effective September 16, 2017, a rating of 20 percent has been assigned for each affected extremity.

The Board has denied service connection for traumatic brain injury residuals and obstructive sleep apnea, but has remanded the claim for lumbosacral strain due to insufficient evidence.

The Board has remanded the Veteran's claims for additional development, including obtaining service treatment and personnel records, verifying his service dates, and scheduling VA examinations to determine the nature and etiology of his claimed disabilities.

The Veteran's depressive disorder with TBI is granted an initial 70 percent rating, effective prior to July 18, 2013.

The Veteran's claims for diabetes mellitus, obstructive sleep apnea, cold weather injury such as frostbite of the upper and lower extremities, and headaches have been denied due to a lack of current diagnoses.

The Veteran's claim for a higher rating for lumbar degenerative disc disease is denied. The Board finds that the evidence does not support an increase in disability ratings beyond 10 percent.,Service connection for TBI with memory loss and psychomotor epilepsy (complex partial seizures and temporal lobe seizures) is remanded as there are issues of fact to be resolved regarding their relationship to service.

The Board has remanded the case due to insufficient medical opinions regarding the cause of the Veteran's death and its relation to service-connected conditions. The Appellant seeks service connection for the cause of her husband's death, which is related to his service-connected disabilities.

The Board has remanded the claims of service connection for traumatic brain injury and tension headaches due to insufficient medical opinions. The lumbosacral strain claim remains denied.

The Veteran's appeal is being remanded due to a duty to assist error. The VA needs to obtain an adequate medical opinion determining the severity of her service-connected TBI and PTSD.

The Board has remanded the case due to a pre-decisional error in obtaining private treatment records related to the Veteran's motorcycle accident and TBI diagnosis. The AOJ is instructed to make reasonable efforts to obtain these records for consideration.

The Board has decided to remand the case due to a duty-to-assist error and will require a new TBI examination.

The Veteran's claims for service connection for TBI, seizure disorder, craniectomy, and stroke disability have been granted. However, the claims for craniectomy and stroke disability are being remanded.,A new and relevant medical opinion has established a link between the Veteran's in-service boxing matches and his current diagnoses of TBI and seizure disorder.

The Veteran's migraine headaches are found to have started during service and granted service connection.,There is no evidence of sleep apnea or related disability, and the claim for this condition is denied.

The Veteran's claims for PTSD, arrhythmia, hypertension, diabetes, skin rash, sleep apnea, TBI, vertigo, and erectile dysfunction were denied as there is no persuasive evidence of a current disability or a link to service.,Specifically, the Board found that the Veteran did not have a current diagnosis of PTSD under DSM-5 criteria at any time during or approximate to the pendency of the claim. The Veteran's arrhythmia and hypertension are conceded but do not meet the nexus requirement as there is no persuasive evidence they began in service.,The Veteran's diabetes was not shown as chronic in service, manifested to a compensable degree within the applicable presumptive period, or etiologically related to an in-service injury or disease. The Veteran's skin rash and sleep apnea were also denied due to lack of persuasive evidence.

The Veteran's claims for PTSD, arrhythmia, hypertension, diabetes, skin rash, sleep apnea, TBI, vertigo, and erectile dysfunction were denied as there is no persuasive evidence of a current disability or a link to service.,Specifically, the Board found that the Veteran did not have a current diagnosis of PTSD under DSM-5 criteria at any time during or approximate to the pendency of the claim. The Veteran's arrhythmia and hypertension are conceded but do not meet the nexus requirement as there is no persuasive evidence they began in service.,The Veteran's diabetes was not shown as chronic in service, manifested to a compensable degree within the applicable presumptive period, or etiologically related to an in-service injury or disease. The Veteran's skin rash and sleep apnea were also denied due to lack of persuasive evidence.

The Veteran's TBI symptoms, including irritability, memory issues, sleep disturbance, fatigue, and concentration difficulty, are attributed to his service-connected PTSD. The Board found that the criteria for an initial compensable disability evaluation for traumatic brain injury have not been met.

The Veteran's appeals for service connection for alcoholism and a traumatic brain injury were dismissed because the VA Form 10182 was not filed within the required time frame.

The Veteran's claim for service connection for right shoulder shrapnel wound scar is granted. The claims for bilateral hearing loss and increased disability ratings for right shoulder bicipital tendonitis, lumbar strain with DDD and arthritis, and head injury are remanded.

The Board denied the Veteran's claim for service connection of Traumatic Brain Injury (TBI) as there is no current diagnosis of TBI at any point during the appeal period.