Hello,
I am wondering how I would go about getting a Chiari Malformation rating? I have a service rating of 30% for headaches which I've had multiple doctors believe it is caused by a Chiari malformation. I've had a CT and MRI done.
16Dec2014 (Brain CT)
FINDINGS:Cerebellar tonsils are protruding slightly inferiorly to theopening of the foramen magnum suggestive for tonsillar ectopiaor very minimal Chiari 1 malformation. The ventricles and sulciare normal in size for the patient's age. No abnormal intra-axialfluid collections are identified. The brain parenchyma appearsintact, with normal gray-white differentiation. No evidence oflarge territory vascular infarct, acute intracranial hemorrhage,mass, or mass-effect. Paranasal sinuses are well aerated withoutevidence for acute sinusitis.
Impression: Low position of the cerebellar tonsils most consistent withtonsillar ectopia. Consider MRI to further assess and rule outpossibility of a mild Chiari 1 malformation.DIAGNOSIS CODE: 4 - ABNORMALITY, ATTENTION NEEDED
So they decided to do a brain MRI:
01Oct2015(Brain MRI)
FINDINGS:The images are slightly degraded by motion artifact.Stable slight asymmetry of the lateral ventricles, the left beingslightly larger in caliber than the right, likely representingdevelopmental variant. The ventricular system is otherwise normalin size for age. Slightly prominent bilateral frontoparietalcortical sulci and adjacent extra-axial spaces again noted. Thebasal cisterns are patent. There are no extra-axial fluidcollections, mass effect or midline shift. No areas of restricteddiffusion are identified to suggest acute infarct. No foci of abnormal magnetic susceptibility are noted on the B0 images tosuggest intracranial hemorrhage.No significant parenchymal signal abnormality detected. Scattereddilated perivascular spaces are incidentally noted bilaterallywithin the supratentorial white matter and gangliocapsularregions. The pituitary gland is normal in size for age. Rightcerebellar tonsillar ectopia again identified, 5 mm below thelevel of the foramen magnum. Borderline low-lying left cerebellartonsil, 2 mm below the level of the foramen magnum.Right parieto-occipital plagiocephaly noted. The calvarium, skullbase and visualized upper cervical spine demonstrate preservedfatty bone marrow signal. Diminutive intracranial right vertebralartery, possibly terminating in the right posterior inferiorcerebellar artery, likely representing developmental variant.Flow voids are present within the remaining major vessels of thecircle of Willis, indicating their patency. The dural sinusesappear grossly unremarkable.Trace mucosal thickening within bilateral inferior frontalsinuses, ethmoid air cells and maxillary sinuses. The paranasalsinuses are otherwise well-aerated. Underpneumatized left greaterthan right inferior mastoids. The remaining right mastoid aircells appear well-aerated. Small amount of fluid noted in theleft lateral mastoid air cells. The intraorbital contents appearwithin normal limits.
Impression: 1. No acute infarct, intracranial hemorrhage, mass effect ormidline shift identified.
2. Right cerebellar tonsillar ectopia,5 mm below the level of the foramen magnum, and borderlinelow-lying left cerebellar tonsil, 2 mm below the level of theforamen magnum
Those are the only two things I have related to it. I was told by a pain management doctor from the VA he believes that these are the reason I am having my bad headaches and even affecting my memory. I can hardly remember last week and sometimes even what I've done that day.
Next week I am seeing my civilian doctor and asking him to do another ct/mri on my brain see if it has gotten worse. I recently went to the eye doctor and my eyes are in pretty bad shape for a 29 year old, but he believes this issue is also causing my eye problems.
Last question, how would I go about filing this as a fully developed claim?
Any advice would be greatly appreciated!