Hearing loss decisions — 2011

The Board has determined that the Veteran's current bilateral hearing loss and tinnitus are not related to his military service, as there is no evidence of in-service noise exposure or continuity of symptoms since service. The preponderance of the evidence does not support a finding of service connection for these conditions.

The Veteran's initial claim for an initial compensable evaluation for bilateral hearing loss has been denied as his service-connected bilateral hearing loss is currently noncompensably disabling.

The Veteran's claims for service connection for bilateral hearing loss and tinnitus were denied. The Board found no current disability for the claim of bilateral hearing loss, but granted service connection for tinnitus as it was diagnosed during active duty.

The Board has reopened the Veteran's claims for service connection for bilateral hearing loss and tinnitus, finding that new evidence received since previous final decisions raises reasonable possibility of substantiating these claims. The Board also granted service connection for both conditions.

The Board has determined that service connection for a bilateral hearing loss disability and degenerative disc disease of the lumbar spine is not warranted as there is no evidence to support a nexus between these conditions and active military service.

The Board has reopened the claim for service connection for a back disability and found new and material evidence to support this claim. However, it determined that there is no causal relationship between the appellant's current hernias, rashes and pruritis, hearing loss, or hypertension with his active service or any service-connected disabilities.

The Board has denied the Veteran's claims for service connection for bilateral hearing loss and an initial rating greater than 20% for diabetes mellitus. The Veteran does not have a current disability of bilateral hearing loss, as her audiometric test results do not meet VA criteria for such a disability. For diabetes mellitus, while she was diagnosed with the condition in service, there is no evidence that it has been aggravated by any service-connected condition or due to an incident of service. The Board also noted that the Veteran's diabetes does not interfere with her ability to work.

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

The Board denied an initial compensable evaluation for bilateral hearing loss as the evidence did not show that the Veteran's service-connected disability warranted a higher rating.

The Veteran's appeal is being remanded for additional development, including verification of stressor events and obtaining VA treatment records. He also needs to undergo examinations for his claimed psychiatric disability, headaches, hearing loss, tinnitus, lumbar spine disorder, stress fractures of the ankles, and stress fractures of the feet.

The Veteran's claim for service connection for bilateral hearing loss was reopened and granted, with the effective date set at the day following the August 2004 denial.,Service connection for tinnitus was granted, but an earlier effective date is denied as no formal or informal claim prior to April 29, 2008, has been identified.

The VA determined that the Veteran's current bilateral hearing loss is not related to his military service and denied his claim for service connection.

The Board found that the appellant does not have hearing loss in either ear that is a result of disease or injury incurred in service, and thus denied his claim for service connection.

The Board found that the appellant's hearing loss and tinnitus did not have their inception during active service or for many years thereafter, and are not causally related to his active service. Therefore, the claims of service connection for bilateral hearing loss and tinnitus were denied.

The Board has granted service connection for hearing loss of the left ear based on aggravation of a pre-existing disorder, as per the settlement agreement.

The Board denied the Veteran's claims of service connection for bilateral hearing loss and coronary artery disease, finding no current disability as defined by VA criteria. The Board also found that there was insufficient evidence to establish a link between any diagnosed conditions and service.

The Veteran's claim for service connection for bilateral hearing loss was denied as there is no evidence of a current disability related to his military service.

The Veteran's appeal is being remanded to allow for a video conference hearing before the Board of Veterans' Appeals. The issues on appeal include service connection claims and reopening claims for various disabilities.

The Board denied service connection for bilateral hearing loss and tinnitus, finding that the Veteran's pre-existing hearing loss did not worsen during his military service and that there is no evidence of in-service noise exposure related to current tinnitus.

The Board has determined that the Veteran does not have current disabilities for which he is seeking service connection, and therefore, his claims are denied.