Hearing loss decisions — 2012

The Veteran's appeal is being remanded for a Board hearing. The issues of service connection for bilateral sensorineural hearing loss, tinnitus, and chronic back pain are still pending.

The Veteran seeks service connection for right ear hearing loss, which he claims is related to his military service. The VA examiner found no evidence of hearing impairment during service and opined that the current right ear hearing loss is less likely as not caused by or the result of noise exposure encountered during military service. However, the Board finds this opinion inadequate due to lack of consideration of normal audiograms at separation and the theory of delayed onset hearing loss.

The Veteran's appeal is being remanded to obtain additional medical evidence and for a VA examination. The issues are whether he has bilateral hearing loss and tinnitus due to service exposure, including noise trauma.

The Veteran's claims for left ear hearing loss, right ear hearing loss, and tinnitus were denied as there is no competent medical evidence linking these conditions to his active military service.

The Board has remanded the case due to discrepancies in audiometric test results and a need for clarification on whether private audiological tests conformed to Maryland CNC standards. The Veteran is scheduled for another VA audiological examination.

The Board has remanded the case for additional development, including obtaining medical records and readjudicating the claims. The Veteran's service connection claims are pending.

The Board found no evidence of hearing loss or tinnitus during service and insufficient medical evidence to establish a link between current conditions and service. The Veteran's statements regarding noise exposure are accepted, but the lack of contemporaneous records makes it impossible to determine if his current hearing loss and tinnitus are related to service.

The Board has granted service connection for bilateral hearing loss, but denied the claims for lung disorder, diabetes mellitus, and hepatitis C. The Veteran's claim for service connection for a lung disorder was withdrawn prior to the issuance of a decision.

The VA determined that the Veteran's bilateral hearing loss is not related to his military service, including acoustic trauma from working around tanks. The Board found no evidence of a nexus between current hearing loss and in-service noise exposure.

The Board has denied the Veteran's claim of service connection for left ear hearing loss, finding that his preexisting condition did not worsen during military service.

The Board has determined that the Veteran's right ear hearing loss disability is related to his military service, and thus grants service connection for this condition.

The Veteran's service-connected bilateral hearing loss was granted a 30 percent rating prior to April 14, 2012 and a 40 percent rating effective from that date. The claim for increased tinnitus is pending.

The Board has found that the Veteran's bilateral hearing loss disability and tinnitus are not related to service, and therefore denied both claims.

The Veteran's claim for an earlier effective date for a TDIU rating was denied as there is no evidence that he was unable to secure or follow substantially gainful employment prior to January 13, 2005.

The Veteran's right ear hearing loss claim is denied as he does not have a current disability. The left ear sensorineural hearing loss claim is granted due to the evidence being in equipoise with regard to whether it was incurred during service.,A VA eye examination and hypertension evaluation are needed for the Veteran's left eye disability and hypertension claims, respectively.

The Board found no current hearing loss disability under VA criteria, thus denying the claim of service connection for bilateral hearing loss.

The Board denied the Veteran's claims for service connection for bilateral hearing loss, tinnitus, and a lung condition (to include asbestosis) due to lack of evidence linking these conditions to his military service.

The Board has determined that a VA examination is needed to properly assess the Veteran's claim for service connection for bilateral hearing loss, as the current evaluation by the examiner did not adequately consider the Veteran's lay assertions and exposure to noise during active duty.

The Veteran's appeal is being remanded for additional development to obtain medical records and for VA examinations.

The Board has reopened the claim for service connection for a bilateral hearing loss disability due to new and material evidence. The Veteran's pre-existing hearing loss was aggravated by active military service.