Hearing loss decisions — 2004

The Board has determined that the veteran does not have current disabilities for right ear hearing loss, bilateral knee disability, or left ear sensorineural hearing loss. Therefore, service connection is denied for these conditions.

The Board has determined that further development of the evidence is needed, including obtaining VA treatment records from 1993 and a new medical opinion regarding the veteran's hearing loss.

The Board has ordered a remand for additional development due to inadequate examination reports, particularly regarding the appellant's hearing loss and tinnitus.

The RO denied the veteran's request to reopen his claim of entitlement to service connection for bilateral hearing loss, finding that new and material evidence had not been submitted.

The Board has granted service connection for bilateral hearing loss and tinnitus, finding that the veteran's current conditions are at least as likely as not related to his military service. The claim of service connection for a penicillin allergy is dismissed.

The veteran has withdrawn their appeal, leaving no issues for the Board to review.

The Board has determined that new and material evidence has been submitted to reopen the claim for service connection for bilateral hearing loss, which was initially denied in April 1988. The veteran's current bilateral hearing loss is found to be related to his period of active service due to noise exposure.

The Board has remanded the case for additional development, including obtaining Social Security Administration records and scheduling a VA audiological examination to determine if hearing loss and tinnitus are related to service.

The veteran withdrew his appeal before a decision was made, thus the matter is dismissed.

The Board has determined that the veteran does not have established service connection for heart disease, hypertension, bilateral hearing loss, or tinnitus. The issues of psychiatric disability and flat feet are pending.

The Board has dismissed the claims for service connection for a cesarean scar and whether new and material evidence has been submitted to reopen claims for service connection for a low back disorder and varicose veins due to lack of timely response.

The Board denied the veteran's claims for increased ratings for his skin disorder, tinnitus, and hearing loss. The skin disorder was rated at 30 percent, while tinnitus and hearing loss were both rated at zero percent.

The Board denied increased ratings for bilateral hearing loss and tinnitus, finding that the evidence did not show an increase in severity of these conditions.

The Board has granted service connection for diabetes mellitus due to exposure to herbicide agents and a 10% evaluation for traumatic amputation of the left fifth finger effective December 31, 2002. The earlier effective date claim is denied.

The veteran has been granted service connection for bilateral hearing loss. The Board found that the current hearing loss is as likely as not related to his military service.

The Board has determined that the veteran's current bilateral hearing loss is attributable to noise exposure during service, and grants service connection for this condition.

The veteran's claims for increased evaluations for bilateral hearing loss and chronic otitis media are being remanded due to further development requirements. The initial tinnitus evaluation of 10 percent is denied as the criteria do not meet for an evaluation in excess of this rating.

The Board denied the veteran's claims for increased ratings for his service-connected bilateral hearing loss and PTSD, and dismissed his claim for service connection for tinnitus. The decision also noted that the veteran had not provided additional evidence to support his individual unemployability (TDIU) claim.

The Board found that the veteran's hearing loss in his right ear had improved, warranting a reduction from a 30 percent rating to a 10 percent rating effective December 1, 2003.

The Board denied a compensable disability rating for left ear hearing loss, finding that the evidence did not support such a rating based on VA's Schedule for Rating Disabilities.