Hearing loss decisions — 2009

The Veteran's initial claim for a compensable evaluation for bilateral hearing loss has been granted, but the appeal is being remanded due to his claim for service connection for chronic cephalgia.

The Board has remanded the Veteran's claims due to a need for further development, including additional medical examination and opinion regarding the etiology of his bilateral hearing loss and tinnitus.

The Veteran does not have hearing loss or tinnitus that is related to his military service.

The evidence does not support a finding that the Veteran's bilateral hearing loss is related to his military service, and thus the claim for service connection has been denied.

The Veteran's claims for higher initial disability evaluations for his bilateral hearing loss and tinnitus were denied. The effective date for the grant of service connection for bilateral hearing loss was set at June 3, 2008.

The Board has determined that the Veteran's bilateral hearing loss and tinnitus were not incurred or aggravated by active service, as there is no evidence of a current disability within one year of separation from service. The VA examiner found that post-service noise exposure was more significant than in-service noise exposure.

The Board has determined that the Veteran's right ear hearing loss and tinnitus are related to his military service, with all reasonable doubt resolved in favor of the claimant.

The Board has found that the Veteran's bilateral hearing loss and tinnitus are related to service, with the most likely cause being noise exposure during his time as a heavy machine gun operator in World War II. As such, the claims for service connection have been granted.

The Board has determined that the appellant does not have a diagnosed bilateral hearing loss or tinnitus during service and finds no evidence to support his claim for service connection. The decision is denied.

The Veteran's service-connected disabilities, including bilateral hearing loss and duodenal ulcer disease with gastroesophageal reflux disease (GERD), do not render him unemployable as a result of his education and occupational experience.

The Veteran's claims for service connection for tinnitus and bilateral hearing loss were reopened, and he was granted increased ratings for PTSD and depressive disorder with anxiety and psychophysiological gastrointestinal reaction, as well as a rating for residuals of perforation right ventricle with retained intercardiac foreign body. The claim for an increased rating for muscle groups I and III of the left pectoral region, status post-left thoracotomy, was granted.

The Veteran's appeal is being remanded for additional development, including obtaining service treatment records and VA examinations to address the nature and etiology of his claimed conditions.

The Board has granted service connection for bilateral hearing loss and tinnitus, finding that these conditions are etiologically related to active service. Service connection was denied for a nose or throat condition (claimed as sinusitis) due to lack of evidence linking it to service.

The Board has found that the Veteran's bilateral hearing loss is causally related to his military service and grants service connection for this condition. The issue of TDIU remains pending as it was remanded.

The Veteran's claim for a compensable evaluation for his service-connected bilateral hearing loss is being remanded due to the inadequacy of the October 2006 VA examination in assessing the functional effects on his employment and daily life.

The Board finds that the Veteran's bilateral hearing loss is caused by his military service and grants service connection for this condition.

The Board denied the Veteran's claims for a compensable rating for chronic otitis media and externa of the left ear and an initial compensable rating for left ear hearing loss, finding that the evidence did not support higher ratings based on the severity of these conditions.

The Board has determined that new and material evidence was submitted to reopen the claims of service connection for bilateral hearing loss and tinnitus. The Veteran's current bilateral hearing loss and tinnitus are found to be related to his military service.

The Board has determined that the Veteran's tinnitus and bilateral hearing loss were not incurred in or aggravated by active service, nor may they be presumed to have been so incurred. The evidence does not support a finding of continuity of symptomatology since service, and there is no medical opinion linking these conditions to service.

The VA denied the Veteran's claims for service connection for bilateral hearing loss and tinnitus, finding that there was no evidence of current disability or a link to service.