Hearing loss decisions — 2007

The Board denied the veteran's service connection claim for skin disorders of the hands, but remanded his hearing loss evaluation for further development.

The Board found no evidence linking the veteran's current hearing loss to his military service, and denied his claim for service connection.

The VA has determined that the veteran's service-connected bilateral hearing loss does not warrant a compensable evaluation.

The Board denied the veteran's request to reopen his claim for service connection for bilateral hearing loss, concluding that no new and material evidence had been submitted.

The veteran's claim for a total disability rating based on individual unemployability and a temporary total evaluation due to hospitalization was denied as his service-connected disabilities alone do not preclude him from securing or following a substantially gainful occupation, and the period of hospitalization did not exceed 21 days.

The Board has determined that the veteran does not have a current disability for which service connection can be granted, specifically left ear hearing loss and refractive error. The other issues of service connection are denied.

The Board has remanded the case for additional development and consideration of the veteran's claims for service connection due to incomplete information in the record, including missing VA medical records and a Social Security Administration (SSA) decision.

The Board has determined that the veteran does not have current bilateral hearing loss or heart disease manifested by RBBB with sinus bradycardia, and thus service connection for these conditions is denied.,The VA examinations did not find any underlying heart disease or hypertension in the veteran's case.

The veteran's appeal is being remanded for additional development, including obtaining medical records and providing the veteran with a VA examination to determine if his back and neck scarring are related to shrapnel wounds from active duty.

The veteran's service-connected disabilities, including bilateral hearing loss and partial amputations of the great toes, render him unemployable due to his physical limitations.

The VA determined that the veteran's service-connected disabilities do not meet the criteria for SMC based on regular aid and attendance or housebound status.

The veteran's claims for service connection for bilateral hearing loss and an acquired psychiatric disorder were denied. The claim for increased rating of psoriasis was granted, but the effective dates are not specified.

The Board has denied the veteran's claims for service connection for various conditions, including bilateral hearing loss, tinnitus, a right inguinal hernia, hemorrhoids, peptic ulcer disease, and degenerative disc disease of the cervical spine. The evidence does not support a finding that these conditions are related to military service.

The Board denied the veteran's claim for an increased disability rating for his service-connected right ear sensorineural hearing loss, finding that the evidence did not meet the criteria for a higher rating.

The Board has determined that the veteran does not have a disability level of hearing impairment in his left ear that meets VA criteria for a service-connected disability. As such, the claim for service connection for left ear hearing loss is denied.

The Board has ordered a VA audiological examination to determine the nature and likely etiology of the veteran's claimed bilateral hearing loss. The examiner is instructed to address whether there was an increase in the severity of the disability from December 1978 to May 1979, and if so, whether this increase was beyond the natural progress of the disorder.

The veteran's PTSD, left eye disability, and bilateral hearing loss are all rated at their maximum levels. The Board finds no basis to grant higher ratings for any of these conditions.

The veteran's claim for PTSD was granted, while his claims for hearing loss and tinnitus were denied.

The Board found that the veteran's hearing loss does not meet the criteria for a compensable rating, resulting in a denial of his claim.

The Board denied a compensable rating for the veteran's bilateral hearing loss, finding that the evidence did not support a higher evaluation.