The Board denied the veteran's claims for increased evaluations for his service-connected chronic headaches, lumbosacral strain/sprain, and postoperative neck and facial scars. The veteran's headaches are characterized by daily occurrences with some light and sound sensitivity but no nausea or visual aura. His lumbosacral strain is limited to flexion of 70 degrees, extension of 20 degrees, lateral flexion and rotation each to 20 degrees without muscle spasm, guarding, or list. The scars are disfiguring with a total length of 6.5 cm, hyperpigmented, tender, and not adherent, ulcerated, depressed, elevated, or adherent.
The deciding factor: The veteran's service-connected conditions do not meet the criteria for higher evaluations under applicable diagnostic codes due to lack of objective evidence supporting more severe manifestations.
- Claimed conditions
- Chronic Headaches, Lumbosacral Strain/Sprain with Borderline Narrowing at L5-S1 and Minimal Vacuum Phenomenon, Postoperative Neck and Facial Scars (Left Parotidectomy)
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- June 14, 2007
- Citation
- 0717919
This is a plain-language summary generated by AI from a public Board of Veterans’ Appeals decision. It can contain errors — always verify against the original. Look up the original decision on VA.gov (opens in a new tab) using citation 0717919.
What this means for you
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What you can do next
Related decisions
Other Board decisions on a similar condition or argued the same way.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Veteran's claim for a compensable disability rating for chronic headaches is remanded due to the need for a new medical examination to assess the frequency and severity of his headaches, including without medication.
- Granted
The Veteran's chronic headaches have been rated at 30 percent since June 24, 2019. The Board has now granted a 50 percent rating effective January 6, 2020.
- Denied
The Veteran's PTSD, chronic headaches, and unspecified dyspnea are rated at 50 percent, non-compensable, respectively. The appeals for higher ratings have been denied.
- Denied
The Board denied service connection for multiple conditions, including PTSD, IBS, cardiac arrhythmia, CFS, chronic headaches, chronic sinusitis, dyspnea, and fibromyalgia. The claim for bilateral pes planus was remanded.
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