Hearing loss decisions — 2012

The Board found that the Veteran's bilateral hearing loss and tinnitus are not related to his service, with the exception of a possible association between the tinnitus and hearing loss. The VA examiner opined that it was less likely than not that these conditions were caused by service.

The Board found that the Veteran's current bilateral hearing loss is not related to his service, and thus denied his claim for service connection.

The Veteran's bilateral hearing loss has been manifested by hearing impairment corresponding to no worse than auditory acuity level I in both ears, and the initial noncompensable disability rating remains appropriate.

The Board has ordered a remand to obtain additional medical opinions regarding the Veteran's bilateral hearing loss, as well as to search for and consider alternative sources of evidence. The case will be returned to the AMC/RO for further development.

The Board finds that the Veteran's current right ear hearing loss disability is not related to his military service or his service-connected left ear hearing loss disability.

The Board has remanded the case for further evidentiary development, including obtaining specific dates and type of Reserve service, and attempting to obtain inpatient treatment records from Smyrna Hospital in Smyrna, Tennessee.

The Veteran's claim for financial assistance in the purchase of specially adapted housing was denied as he does not meet any of the criteria for such benefits due to his service-connected disabilities.

The Veteran's tinnitus is found to be related to his military service, with the Board granting service connection for this condition.,Service connection was denied for the Veteran's low back disability due to a lack of evidence linking it to his active duty.

The Veteran's claims for increased ratings for a psychiatric disability and left ear hearing loss are being remanded due to missing records. The VA is required to attempt to obtain relevant medical records from the Veteran's treatment providers.

The Veteran's appeal is being remanded for additional development to determine the nature and extent of his service-connected disabilities, as well as whether he has other disabilities that are related to his military service.

The Board found no current bilateral hearing loss disability for VA purposes and denied service connection for a bilateral hearing loss disability. The Veteran's tinnitus was not shown to be related to his military service.

The Veteran's appeal is being remanded for further development, including additional examinations to determine the etiology of his bilateral hearing loss and conjunctivitis of the right eye.

The Veteran's claims for bilateral hearing loss and tinnitus are being remanded due to inadequate VA examination, as the examiner did not address whether his current disabilities were related to service noise exposure.

The Board has dismissed the appeal for service connection for bilateral hearing loss disability. The Veteran's claim for left leg disability other than those already granted (left knee synovitis/patellofemoral syndrome) is denied as there is no evidence of a disease or injury in service that caused or aggravated such disability.

The Board has determined that the Veteran's bilateral hearing loss and tinnitus are causally related to his military service, granting service connection for these conditions.

The Board has determined that the Veteran's bilateral hearing loss and tinnitus are related to his active service, with noise exposure during military service being a significant factor.

The Veteran's claim for bilateral hearing loss was denied as there is no evidence of a current disability. The claim for bilateral tinnitus was granted as the Veteran provided credible testimony of its onset during service and persistence since then.

The Veteran's claim for an increased rating for bilateral hearing loss has been remanded due to inconsistencies in the audiometric test results. The case will be reviewed again by the RO.

The Board has determined that the Veteran's current bilateral hearing loss and tinnitus are related to his in-service acoustic trauma, resolving all doubts in favor of the Veteran. As such, service connection for these conditions is granted.

The Board has determined that the Veteran's current bilateral hearing loss disability is related to his noise exposure in service, and thus grants service connection for this condition.