The Board denied the Veteran's claim for compensation under 38 U.S.C. § 1151 for chronic headaches, as there was no evidence that the additional disability was caused by VA medical treatment.
The deciding factor: The VA medical opinions concluded that it was less likely than not that the Veteran's chronic headaches were related to his tympanectomy surgery and that there was no additional disability from carelessness or negligence on the part of the attending VA personnel.
- Claimed conditions
- chronic headaches
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- January 9, 2024
- Citation
- 24001435
What this means for you
A denial is a starting point, not the end of the road. You can see why this claim fell short — and, if you are still inside the one-year window, the appeal lanes that may remain open to you.
What you can do next
Related decisions
Other Board decisions on a similar condition or argued the same way.
- Dismissed
The appeal of the evaluation in excess of 30 percent for chronic headaches was dismissed by the Veteran prior to the promulgation of a decision.
- Denied
The Veteran's request for higher-level review of the November 2014 rating decision was denied as untimely.
- Partly granted
The Board granted service connection for left and right hip strain, left and right ankle pain, and bilateral plantar fasciitis as secondary to the Veteran's service-connected bilateral knee disability. The claims for allergic rhinitis, chronic sinusitis, chronic headaches, irritable bowel syndrome (IBS), and post traumatic residual pain and cramping of the left lower leg were remanded.
- Partly granted
The Veteran's service connection for chronic headaches was granted, while claims for bilateral hearing loss, chronic fatigue syndrome, a higher rating for contusion of the left great toe, and an initial compensable rating for allergic rhinitis were denied.
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