The Board denied service connection for headaches, to include migraines, as the evidence did not show that the veteran's pre-existing condition was aggravated by his military service.
The deciding factor: There is no competent evidence showing an increase in severity of the veteran's headache condition during service or that it was aggravated by service. The single instance of treatment in-service does not constitute an increase in severity, and there is no evidence linking the current disability to service on its merits.
- Claimed conditions
- chronic headaches, migraines
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating
- Not verified here — check the original decision
- Decision date
- February 12, 2009
- Citation
- 0905073
Veterans Law Judge
Decisions by this judge: 1,377 · Granted: 17% (granted or partly granted, in the indexed decisions on this site)
Judge attribution: 2025 complete; earlier years partial.
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. Search VA.gov for the original decision (opens in a new tab) using citation 0905073.
What this means for you
A final Board denial may be appealed to the U.S. Court of Appeals for Veterans Claims, generally within 120 days of the Board mailing date. A Supplemental Claim with new and relevant evidence is a separate option. Another Higher-Level Review of the Board decision is not available. Check your own notice: this historical decision does not set your deadline.
What you can do next
Use your own notice and decision stage. A remanded issue is not a final court-appealable denial. VA review guidance and CAVC filing instructions (U.S. federal; reviewed October 7, 2026).
Related decisions
Other Board decisions on a similar condition or argued the same way.
- Whole decision: Granted
The Veteran's claim for service connection for migraines was reopened due to new evidence. Service connection is granted for painful scars, but the rating assigned remains at 10 percent. The claims for fibromyalgia and bilateral shoulder disability are denied.
- Whole decision: Granted
The Board has determined that the Veteran's headaches are at least as likely as not caused by his service-connected traumatic brain injury, and thus grants service connection for this condition.
- Whole decision: Dismissed
The appeal concerning the service connection claims for various conditions and initial compensable evaluations for service-connected erectile dysfunction and bilateral hearing loss is dismissed due to the Veteran's death.
- Whole decision: Granted
The Board has granted a 50 percent disability rating for the Veteran's migraines, effective April 30, 2026. The decision found that the Veteran's migraine headaches caused characteristic very frequent completely prostrating and prolonged attacks productive of severe economic inadaptability.
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