Hearing loss decisions — 2013

The Board finds that the Veteran's bilateral hearing loss is attributable to service, specifically his exposure to noise from artillery fire during active duty. The claim for service connection is granted.

The Board found that the Veteran does not have hearing loss or tinnitus that is attributable to his active military service.

The Board has determined that the Veteran's claimed bilateral hearing loss disability and tinnitus are not related to service, as there is no credible evidence of a nexus between his in-service acoustic trauma and current disabilities. The preponderance of the evidence does not support granting service connection for these conditions.

The Board has remanded the case for additional development, including obtaining audiometric test results and conducting a VA examination to determine if the Veteran's current hearing loss disability is related to service.

The Board has remanded the case due to insufficient examination regarding the Veteran's lay assertions of in-service noise exposure and symptoms.

The Veteran's appeal is remanded for clarification of the use of the Maryland CNC word list in his audiological evaluations and for an addendum opinion regarding whether his service-connected bilateral hearing loss disability renders him unemployable.

The Board has determined that further clarification is needed regarding the Veteran's claims for service connection and an initial compensable rating for left ear hearing loss, right ear hearing loss, and Meniere's Disease. The case is REMANDED to obtain additional VA treatment records, provide a comprehensive opinion on whether the diagnosed conditions are related to service or not, and conduct a new examination for hearing acuity.

The Board has granted service connection for bilateral hearing loss, tinnitus, and degenerative disc disease of the lumbar spine. The Veteran's low back disability is considered to be due to normal aging and genetic predisposition rather than in-service injury.

The Veteran's hypertension, hearing loss disability, and ruptured left eardrum are all found to be service-connected. The effective date is not specified.

The Veteran's claim for service connection for Meniere's disease and hearing loss was granted, with the latter being reopened based on new evidence. The decision is mixed as it grants one issue (Meniere's disease) but denies another (hearing loss).

The Board has reopened the Veteran's claim for service connection for bilateral hearing loss and finds that a current disability is present, with evidence linking it to in-service acoustic trauma. The decision grants service connection.

The Board has determined that new and material evidence has been submitted to reopen the claim for service connection for bilateral hearing loss. The reopened claim is now before the RO or AMC for further adjudication.

The Board has determined that the Veteran's claim for an effective date prior to October 7, 2011 for service connection of bilateral hearing loss cannot be granted as he did not file a timely notice of disagreement or submit new and material evidence within one year of the May 2007 rating decision denying his claim.

The Veteran's bilateral hearing loss disability and tinnitus are related to service.

The Board has determined that new and material evidence has been received to reopen the Veteran's claim of service connection for hearing loss. The Veteran contends his hearing loss is related to military service, including noise exposure during active duty.

The Veteran's appeal is being remanded for a new VA audiological evaluation to determine the current severity of his bilateral hearing loss disability. The claim will be readjudicated after this additional development.

The Veteran's service-connected bilateral hearing loss has been rated at 40 percent since December 2008, based on the criteria for moderate to severe sensorineural hearing loss in both ears. The VA examiner found no significant change in pure tone thresholds from previous examinations and noted some improvement in speech recognition scores.

The Veteran's service-connected bilateral hearing loss and tinnitus do not render him unable to obtain or retain substantially gainful employment.

The Board found that the Veteran's right ear hearing loss did not have its onset during active service or within one year thereafter, and it is not otherwise related to active service. Therefore, the claim for service connection for right ear hearing loss was denied.

The Board found that the Veteran's current hearing loss and tinnitus are not related to his active duty service, as there was no evidence of a permanent threshold shift in either ear at discharge.