Hearing loss decisions — 2009

The Board found that the Veteran's right ear hearing loss did not increase in severity during service and denied his claim for service connection.

The Board denied service connection for hearing loss of the left ear and granted a non-compensable rating for right ear hearing loss. Service connection was also denied for Meniere's syndrome.

The Veteran's appeal is being remanded due to incomplete development of his claims for service connection for bilateral hearing loss and tinnitus. The issues have not been fully addressed, particularly regarding the etiology of his hearing loss.

The VA denied the appellant's claims for increased evaluations and service connection for various conditions, including bilateral tinnitus, hearing loss, right ankle disorder, arthritis of the right ankle, lump masses throughout the body, residuals of a bilateral eye injury, multiple joint arthritis, right elbow condition, right knee disability, facial paralysis, and injuries to the tailbone and hips.

The Board has determined that the Veteran's bilateral hearing loss is related to service and grants service connection for this condition.

The Veteran's initial claim for a compensable disability rating for bilateral hearing loss was granted, but the assigned noncompensable rating is effective as of the date of his original claim.

The Board is reopening the claim for service connection for a back disability on the basis of new and material evidence. However, the claims are remanded to further develop before adjudicating them on the underlying merits.

The Board has determined that the appellant's bilateral knee disabilities and bilateral hearing loss are not related to service, including his military service in Vietnam. The claims for service connection have been denied.

The Veteran's claims for service connection for bilateral hearing loss and tinnitus are being remanded due to inadequate examination reports. Additional VA treatment records, including recent ones, need to be obtained.

The Veteran's claim for a higher rating for his service-connected back disability and special monthly compensation based on the need for aid and attendance of another person were both denied due to lack of evidence showing he required regular assistance or had incapacitating episodes.

The Veteran's claims for an initial compensable rating for bilateral hearing loss and service connection for tinnitus were denied. The Board found no evidence of a nexus between the claimed conditions and active service.

The Veteran's claim for increased ratings for bilateral hearing loss with otitis media, right chronic, posttraumatic nonsuppurative was denied. The Board found that the evidence did not support a higher rating prior to June 25, 2008 and no higher than 70 percent thereafter.

The Board has granted service connection for bilateral hearing loss and tinnitus, finding that the Veteran's current hearing loss and tinnitus are likely due to his active military service. The effective date of this decision is not specified as it was received after April 10, 2003.

The Veteran's claims for service connection for bilateral hearing loss and tinnitus are being remanded due to the inadequacy of the March 2006 VA examination, which relied on inaccurate facts regarding noise exposure.

The Veteran's service-connected disabilities require the regular aid and attendance of another person, leading to a favorable decision for special monthly compensation based on need for regular aid and attendance.

The Board has determined that the Veteran's bilateral hearing loss and tinnitus are service-connected due to exposure to combat noise during service. Service connection for diabetes mellitus is granted as well, though it was not incurred in service.

The Veteran's claims for increased evaluations and service connection have been denied. The appeal is remanded to the RO.

The Veteran's claim for a higher rating for service-connected bilateral hearing loss was denied as his disability did not meet the criteria for a compensable evaluation.

The Veteran's claim for an initial compensable rating for bilateral hearing loss is being remanded due to the need for a new VA examination and consideration of recent treatment records.

The Board found that the Veteran's current bilateral hearing loss and tinnitus are not related to his military service, including any claimed acoustic trauma. The evidence does not support a finding of chronic hearing loss during service or post-service noise exposure resulting in these conditions.