Hearing loss decisions — 2011

The Board has determined that the Veteran's bilateral hearing loss and tinnitus are related to his military service, with the left ear hearing loss being aggravated by service. The Veteran was exposed to noise in the boiler room during service.

The Veteran's claims for increased ratings for hearing loss and an earlier effective date for otitis were denied. The Board found that the evidence did not support a higher rating for his hearing loss or an earlier effective date for otitis.

The Board has determined that the Veteran's tinnitus is not related to his active duty service, and therefore denied the claim for service connection.

The Veteran's bilateral hearing loss was initially granted service connection and rated at 0 percent prior to March 15, 2010. From that date, the rating was increased to 10 percent. The Board found no basis for further staged ratings.

The Board has determined that the Veteran does not have a current bilateral hearing loss disability and therefore cannot establish service connection for this condition.

The Veteran's appeal is remanded due to the need for a new VA examination of his bilateral hearing loss, and attempts should be made to obtain treatment records from Dr. A.C.C., Dr. J.L.W., and Dr. J.N.B.

The Veteran's appeal is being remanded due to incomplete records. The issue of entitlement to an initial evaluation in excess of 30 percent for bilateral hearing loss will be reconsidered with the addition of any relevant new evidence.

The Board has determined that new and material evidence has been submitted to reopen the claims of service connection for bilateral hearing loss and tinnitus. However, the Veteran's current diagnoses do not establish a link between his military noise exposure and his current disabilities.

The Board has dismissed the appellant's appeals on all issues except for the issue of an earlier effective date for service connection for tinnitus. The claim was denied as there is no evidence showing that the Veteran raised a claim within one year of his discharge from service, and the RO did not have notice of any pertinent evidence prior to July 10, 2008.

The Board has decided that additional development is needed to determine if the Veteran's current bilateral hearing loss disability is related to his military service, including noise exposure. The case will be returned to the RO for further review.

The Board has determined that the Veteran's tinnitus began during his military service and is related to noise exposure. However, there is no evidence of hearing loss in the right ear for VA purposes.

The Board found that the Veteran's bilateral hearing loss and tinnitus are not related to his service, as there is no evidence of these conditions during or within one year after service. The VA examiner opined that it is less likely than not that the current hearing loss and tinnitus were incurred during military service.

The Board has granted service connection for bilateral hearing loss and tinnitus, finding that these conditions are related to the Veteran's active duty service. The effective date is not specified as it was determined based on the date of receipt of the claim.

The Veteran's initial claim for a compensable rating for bilateral hearing loss has been denied as his service-connected hearing loss does not meet the criteria for any higher rating under VA's schedular guidelines.

The Board has remanded the claim of entitlement to service connection for right ear hearing loss due to additional evidentiary development being needed. The Veteran's current right ear hearing loss disability is presumed to be related to military noise exposure, but further medical comment is required.

The Board found that the Veteran's current bilateral hearing impairment was not incurred in or aggravated by his ACDUTRA service, and thus denied his claim for service connection.

The Veteran's claim for a higher rating for his service-connected bilateral hearing loss was denied as the evidence did not show that his disability presented such an exceptional or unusual picture with related factors as to render impractical the application of the regular schedular standards and he is not entitled to a higher rating.

The Board has denied service connection for bilateral hearing loss and tinnitus, finding that the Veteran's current conditions are not due to any incident or event in active military service.

The Board of Veterans' Appeals (Board) denied the Veteran's claim for service connection for bilateral hearing loss, finding that there was not substantial compliance with prior remand instructions and requiring another VA examination.

The Veteran withdrew his appeal for a compensable rating for bilateral hearing loss.