The Veteran's appeal is remanded for additional examinations to determine the nature and severity of his service-connected tension headaches, as well as whether he has established neck and right upper extremity radiculopathy conditions. The cause or aggravation of these conditions by his service-connected back disability will also be evaluated.
The deciding factor: The Veteran's claims are remanded due to the need for additional medical examinations to assess the current status of his service-connected tension headaches, as well as whether he has established neck and right upper extremity radiculopathy conditions. The cause or aggravation of these conditions by his service-connected back disability will also be evaluated.
- Claimed conditions
- Tension headaches, Neck disorder, Right upper extremity radiculopathy, Left lower extremity radiculopathy
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- January 5, 2024
- Citation
- 24000800
Veterans Law Judge
Decisions by this judge: 291 · Granted: 26% (granted or partly granted, in the vetted 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. Look up the original decision on VA.gov (opens in a new tab) using citation 24000800.
What this means for you
A remand is not a loss. The Board sent the case back for more development — often a new exam or missing records — before making a final decision. Many remands later end in a grant, and the decision spells out exactly what the Board wanted to see.
What you can do next
Related decisions
Other Board decisions on a similar condition or argued the same way.
- Granted
The Board has granted effective dates of July 10, 2024 for service connection for PTSD, lumbar strain, and left lower extremity radiculopathy.
- Granted
The Veteran's initial evaluation for tension headaches to include migraines is granted, with a rating of 50 percent effective from May 23, 2023.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Veteran's claim for a compensable disability rating for tension and migraine headaches is remanded due to the inadequacy of the September 2020 VA examination report, which did not consider the ameliorative effects of medication.
- Granted
The Veteran's tension headaches, which have been service-connected since the grant of service connection, are found to be very frequent and completely prostrating with prolonged attacks productive of severe economic inadaptability. The Board grants an initial 50 percent rating for tension headaches prior to December 1, 2020.
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