The Board denied service connection for migraine headaches and depression, finding that the evidence did not support a link between these conditions and the Veteran's active duty service.,For migraine headaches, the Board found no nexus to service. For depression, it was determined that while there is a relationship with migraine headaches, as there is no other service-connected condition, secondary service connection cannot be granted.
The deciding factor: The evidence did not show a direct link between the Veteran's migraine headaches and his active duty service.,While the Veteran had depression related to his migraine headaches, he was not service connected for any other conditions that could support secondary service connection for his depression.
- Claimed conditions
- migraine headaches, depression
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- January 23, 2020
- Citation
- 20005572
Veterans Law Judge
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. Look up the original decision on VA.gov (opens in a new tab) using citation 20005572.
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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 Board has remanded the claims for bilateral hearing loss, migraine headaches, and PTSD due to additional development of records and examination.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board has remanded the case for additional development, including obtaining in-service psychiatric treatment records and scheduling a VA examination to determine the nature and etiology of any acquired psychiatric disorder.
- Denied
The Veteran's depression was rated at 50 percent prior to July 1, 2016. The Board found that the evidence did not support a higher rating due to occupational and social impairment with reduced reliability and productivity. For TDIU, the Veteran had multiple service-connected disabilities but his education and work experience were sufficient for sedentary or light labor employment.
- Granted
The Veteran's depression was rated at 50 percent prior to September 27, 2017. From September 27, 2017, the rating for depression increased to 70 percent.
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