Hearing loss decisions — 2008

The veteran's claims for service connection for bilateral hearing loss and tinnitus are being remanded due to the need for additional development, including obtaining medical records and scheduling a VA examination.

The veteran's service-connected bilateral hearing loss is granted, but not at a compensable level. Service connection for tinnitus is granted based on the veteran's credible history of exposure to acoustic trauma in service and his current symptoms.

The Board found that the veteran does not have a current heart condition, urinary tract condition, groin condition, right knee condition, or right leg condition related to service. The veteran's tinea versicolor and pseudofolliculitis barbae (PFB) were aggravated by service, while his hearing loss was not shown to be due to service.

The Board has determined that the veteran's current bilateral hearing loss disability is not related to his military service, including exposure to noise during combat in Vietnam. The preponderance of evidence does not support a finding that the veteran's hearing loss began or was aggravated by service.

The Board has determined that the appellant's bilateral hearing loss disability and tinnitus are attributable to service. The claim for low back disability is pending.

The veteran's bilateral hearing loss is granted a 10% rating. However, his service connection claim for hypertension is denied as there is no evidence of its onset in service or due to any other presumptive basis.

The Board finds that the evidence is at least in equipoise as to whether the veteran's hearing loss is related to service, and thus grants service connection for this disability.

The veteran's bilateral hearing loss and low back disability were granted service connection, but the rating for her low back disability was increased to 10 percent effective May 10, 2006. The veteran's bilateral hearing loss remains at a noncompensable level.

The Board has remanded the case due to the unavailability of service records and a need for additional development, including an examination.

The Board has determined that the veteran's service-connected bilateral hearing loss does not warrant a compensable rating, as his hearing acuity is consistently at Level I in both ears.

The Board found no evidence of a hearing loss disability in service and denied the claim for service connection.

The Board denied the veteran's claims for service connection for bilateral hearing loss and back pain. The decision found that new and material evidence had not been submitted to reopen the claim for back pain, and that the veteran's currently diagnosed disabilities were not related to his military service.

The Board has determined that the veteran's claimed bilateral hearing loss and tinnitus are not related to his active service, and therefore denied both claims.

The Board has determined that the veteran does not have a current disability of bilateral hearing loss for VA purposes, and thus service connection is denied.

The Board has determined that the veteran's claimed bilateral hearing loss and tinnitus were not incurred in or aggravated by service, as there is no evidence of a current disability related to service. The VA examiner found that any hearing loss was more likely due to age-related factors rather than noise exposure during service.

The Board found that the veteran's bilateral hearing loss did not warrant a compensable rating, as his audiometric findings consistently fell within level I or II hearing loss, which corresponds to zero percent evaluations.

The VA denied an initial disability rating in excess of 20 percent for the veteran's bilateral hearing loss.

The Board has determined that service connection for the claimed bilateral hearing loss is not warranted based on the evidence of record.

The Board found that the veteran's current bilateral hearing loss is not related to his military service and denied his claim for service connection.

The veteran's claims for increased ratings and service connection were denied. The Board found that the veteran did not meet the schedular criteria for a compensable rating for bilateral hearing loss, and his diabetes mellitus was not incurred or aggravated by active service. PTSD was also denied as there was no evidence of an in-service stressor. Multiple medical conditions claimed due to ionizing radiation were also denied.