Hearing loss decisions — 2012

The Board has determined that the Veteran does not have a right wrist disorder, right knee disorder, right foot disorder (including arthritis), back disorder (including arthritis), bilateral hearing loss, fungus infections of the ears, residuals of a perforated left eardrum, tonsillitis, spot on the left lung, or hemorrhoids. The skin condition is also denied.

The Veteran's appeal is being remanded to the RO for scheduling a videoconference hearing. The claims for service connection remain pending.

The Veteran's bilateral hearing loss is found to be related to his service-connected diabetes, and thus granted as secondary service connection.

The Board found that the Veteran's tinnitus and bilateral hearing loss were not incurred or aggravated by service, as there was no evidence of a significant change in hearing acuity during active duty. The presumption of soundness attached to his enlistment due to pre-existing hearing loss.

The Board has found that the Veteran's tinnitus had its onset in service and granted service connection for this condition. For Meniere's disease, the Board has also found that it is at least as likely as not related to active service, including noise exposure during artillery duty. Service connection was granted for bilateral hearing loss based on noise exposure during service.

The Board found that the Veteran's hearing loss and tinnitus did not meet the criteria for service connection as they were not shown to have been incurred or aggravated during his active duty.

The Veteran's appeal is being remanded for additional development, including obtaining SSA records and VA treatment records. A new VA examination will be scheduled to assess the severity of his PTSD symptoms and whether he is unemployable due to his service-connected conditions.

The Veteran's appeal is remanded for further development, including obtaining VA treatment records and scheduling a VA examination to assess his employability due to service-connected bilateral hearing loss and tinnitus.

The Veteran's claim for a compensable initial evaluation for bilateral hearing loss has been denied by the Board of Veterans' Appeals.

The Board finds that the Veteran's current bilateral hearing loss and tinnitus are not related to his military service, as there is no evidence of such conditions during or immediately following service. The VA examiner opined that the Veteran's hearing loss and tinnitus were more likely due to post-service occupational noise exposure.

The Board has determined that the Veteran's bilateral hearing loss and bilateral tinnitus are service-connected, with both conditions meeting the regulatory requirements for hearing loss disability for VA purposes.

The Board has determined that the Veteran's bilateral hearing loss and tinnitus are related to his active service, with a presumption of soundness at entry into service. The Veteran reported exposure to noise during service as an artillery crewman.

The Board found that the Veteran's report of experiencing hearing loss during service, which continued to the present, was not credible. As a result, the criteria for service connection for bilateral hearing loss have not been met.

The Board is remanding the claim due to the need for further development and consideration, including addressing both direct service connection and secondary service connection theories.

The Board has determined that the Veteran's current bilateral hearing loss and tinnitus are related to noise exposure during active military service, and thus grants service connection for these conditions.

The Board found no evidence of a hearing loss disability during service and concluded that the current bilateral hearing loss is not related to military service.

The Board has remanded the Veteran's claims of entitlement to service connection for bilateral hearing loss and tinnitus due to additional development required.

The Veteran has withdrawn his appeal for the claims of service connection for bilateral hearing loss, tinnitus, and a skin disorder due to herbicide exposure. The appeal is dismissed.

The Veteran's service-connected disabilities do not render him unemployable due to their combined effect, as his PTSD and other conditions allow for substantially gainful employment.