Hearing loss decisions — 2011

The Veteran's claims of service connection for residuals of left ear infections, bilateral hearing loss, and an acquired psychiatric disorder (including PTSD and depression) have been reopened. However, the new evidence does not provide a valid diagnosis related to confirmed in-service stressors or establish a medical relationship with his pre-existing conditions.

The Veteran's service connection claims for right and left ear hearing loss have been denied as there is no current disability meeting VA criteria.

The Board has remanded the claims of whether new and material evidence has been received to reopen service connection for bilateral hearing loss and tinnitus.

The Board has granted service connection for bilateral hearing loss and tinnitus, finding that the Veteran's current disabilities are related to his in-service noise exposure.

The Board denied the Veteran's claims for service connection for right ear hearing loss, left ear hearing loss, and tinnitus. The decision found that new and material evidence had not been received to reopen any of these claims, and that the Veteran's current hearing loss disabilities were not incurred in or aggravated by active service.

The Board has determined that the Veteran does not have current diagnoses of bilateral hearing loss or tinnitus, and there is no credible evidence linking his claimed conditions to service. The claim for non-Hodgkin's lymphoma remains pending as additional development is needed.

The Board has determined that the Veteran does not have a current diagnosis of hearing loss in his right ear as defined by VA standards. The preponderance of evidence is against finding that he incurred or developed any of these conditions during service, and there is no credible evidence linking them to service.

The Veteran's service-connected disabilities are not shown to have caused or contributed substantially to his death, which was due to a head injury with subdural hematoma.

The Veteran's claims for PTSD, tinnitus, and residuals of traumatic brain injury have been granted. The claim for bilateral hearing loss was denied as there is no evidence of a current disability.

The Board has determined that there is no current diagnosis of hepatitis A, and thus the Veteran's claim for service connection for this condition cannot be granted. The hearing loss disability claim will be remanded for further development.

The Veteran's claim for an increased rating for bilateral hearing loss is being remanded due to the need for additional development, including obtaining medical records and scheduling a VA examination.

The Board has determined that new and material evidence has been received to reopen the claim for service connection for bilateral hearing loss disability. The Veteran's testimony before the undersigned VLJ concerning his in-service noise exposure and onset of BHL disability is considered sufficient to raise a reasonable possibility of substantiating the claim.

The Board has granted service connection for right ear hearing loss due to aggravation during service. The issue of tinnitus is remanded as the VA examination report did not consider the Veteran's reports of in-service noise exposure and tinnitus.

The Veteran's bilateral hearing loss is manifested by audiometric test results corresponding to numeric designations no worse than Level I in each ear and speech recognition ability no worse than 94% in the right ear and no worse than 98% in the left ear. The criteria for an initial compensable rating for bilateral hearing loss have not been met.

The Board has remanded the case to the RO for further development, including obtaining records of annual hearing tests and scheduling a VA audiologic examination.

The Veteran's claim for service connection for right ear hearing loss was denied as there is no evidence of current disability. The Veteran's left ear hearing loss has been evaluated as noncompensable since September 26, 2007.

The Veteran's PTSD has been rated at 70 percent since September 12, 2005. He is also service-connected for ischemic heart disease and tinnitus. The Board finds that the Veteran meets the criteria for a total disability rating based on unemployability due to his service-connected disabilities.

The Board has determined that the Veteran's hearing loss and tinnitus are not related to his military service.

The Board has vacated its March 2, 2001 decision denying service connection for bilateral hearing loss. The Veteran's current bilateral hearing loss disability is related to exposure to noise in service and the claim is granted.

The Veteran's claims of service connection and initial compensable ratings for left knee bursitis, right knee ganglion cyst, right wrist distal radius fracture, and left ear hearing loss have been granted. The effective date is September 1, 2005.