Hearing loss decisions — 2006

The Board has determined that the veteran does not have hearing loss for VA purposes and therefore, service connection for bilateral hearing loss is denied.

The veteran's claim for an increased rating for his service-connected bilateral hearing loss is being remanded due to the need for a new examination.

The Board denied the veteran's claims for service connection for a lumbar spine disorder, hearing loss, and tinnitus due to lack of evidence linking these conditions to his military service.

The veteran's current bilateral hearing loss and tinnitus are found to be related to his in-service exposure to loud noise, thus service connection is granted for these conditions.

The Board denied service connection for bilateral hearing loss, tinnitus, and anxiety disorder (claimed as post-traumatic stress disorder) due to lack of evidence linking these conditions to service.

The Board denied service connection for bilateral hearing loss and bronchitis, finding no evidence of current disabilities related to service. The claim for an acquired psychiatric disorder was denied as final due to lack of a chronic disability present in or after service.

The Board denied the veteran's claims for earlier effective dates for service connection of PTSD, bilateral hearing loss, and tinnitus. The RO had already granted these conditions with effective dates as of September 17, 1999, June 26, 2001, and April 8, 2002 respectively.

The Board denied the veteran's claims for increased ratings for bilateral hearing loss and tinnitus, finding that his service-connected disabilities did not warrant a rating greater than 10 percent.

The Board has remanded the case for additional development, including obtaining medical records and conducting VA examinations to determine if the veteran's current conditions are related to his service.

The Board has determined that the veteran's bilateral hearing loss and tinnitus were not incurred or aggravated by service, and thus denied both claims.

The Board denied the veteran's claims for service connection for bilateral hearing loss and tinnitus, finding no evidence of a nexus between his current disabilities and his time in service.

The Board has determined that the veteran's left ear hearing loss was aggravated by service, and granted service connection for this condition. However, there is no evidence of right ear hearing loss meeting the criteria for a disability under VA regulations or tinnitus meeting the criteria for a disability under VA regulations.

The veteran's tinnitus is found to be service-connected, and his hearing loss in both ears has been granted a 30% rating effective from July 13, 2005.

The Board has determined that the veteran's hearing is at Level I in both ears, and therefore does not meet the criteria for a compensable rating under VA regulations. The claim for an increased evaluation for tinnitus was also denied.

The Board has denied the veteran's claim of service connection for bilateral hearing loss, finding that there is no evidence linking his current hearing loss to his active duty service.

The Board found that the veteran has sufficient bilateral hearing loss to be considered a disability and determined it is as likely as not due to acoustic trauma in service. For sinusitis, the Board noted evidence of chronic sinusitis but no incapacitating episodes or significant treatment required by antibiotics. The claims were remanded for further development.

The Board found no evidence of a causal relationship between the veteran's service-connected sarcoidosis and his claimed conditions, including status post parotid gland lesion, right ear hearing loss, tinnitus, and follicular hyperplasia of the right peri- and intra-parotid lymph nodes. Therefore, the claims for secondary service connection were denied.

The Board has denied the veteran's claims for service connection for various conditions, including right knee disability, left knee disability, neck disability, sinus disability, bilateral hearing loss, and tinnitus. The rating in excess of 30 percent for PTSD was also denied.

The Board has determined that the veteran does not have a current low back disorder, bilateral knee disorder, PUD with chronic hematochezia, psychiatric disorder, or hearing loss that is related to service. The tinnitus was also denied as it did not manifest during service.

The Board denied the veteran's claims for service connection for bilateral sensorineural hearing loss, a lumbar spine condition, and a cervical spine condition. The claim for visual disorder was also denied.