Hearing loss decisions — 2013

The Board found that the Veteran's bilateral hearing loss disability was not incurred in or aggravated by service and sensorineural hearing loss may not be presumed to have been incurred therein.

The Veteran's lumbar spine disorder, arthritis, bilateral hearing loss, and tinnitus were not shown to have been incurred or aggravated during active service.,There is no evidence of a nexus between the current diagnoses and any in-service events or diseases.

The Board denied the Veteran's claims for service connection for squamous cell carcinoma of the right external auditory canal, right ear hearing loss, and left ear hearing loss. The claim for squamous cell carcinoma was reopened based on new evidence, but service connection was not granted due to lack of a link between the condition and service.

The Veteran's bilateral hearing loss was not present during service, did not manifest to a compensable degree within one year from separation, and is unrelated to an injury or disease in service.

The Board has remanded the claims for additional development due to inconsistencies in evidence and inadequate examination reports.

The Board has determined that the Veteran's bilateral hearing loss disability is not related to his active service and thus denied his claim for service connection.

The Veteran's bilateral hearing loss has been rated at 10 percent since October 27, 1998. A separate rating of 10 percent is granted for ear infections related to his service-connected bilateral hearing loss.

The Veteran's current diagnosis of tinnitus is found to be related to his in-service noise exposure and his service-connected sensorineural hearing loss, thus service connection for tinnitus is granted.

The Veteran's appeal is being remanded for additional development to obtain medical opinions regarding the etiology of his claimed disabilities, including bilateral hearing loss and tinnitus. The low back, right shoulder, and left knee conditions are also under review.

The Veteran's right ear hearing loss has been evaluated as noncompensable, with no more than level I hearing in his right ear. The Board finds that the evidence does not support a compensable evaluation.

The Board has granted the Veteran's claim for service connection for hearing loss. The tinnitus claim was denied in a final May 1996 rating decision, but new and material evidence has been received to reopen this claim.

The Board found that the Veteran's left ear hearing loss is not related to his active military service and denied his claim for service connection.

The Board has determined that the Veteran's bilateral hearing loss warrants a 20 percent disability rating under DC 6100, as his pure tone threshold average and speech discrimination score received a numeric designation of Level VI for his right ear and Level V for his left ear. The preponderance of the evidence does not show an exceptional or unusual disability picture.

The Board denied the Veteran's claims for service connection for left ear hearing loss, lumbar spine strain, and vertigo due to a lack of evidence showing in-service onset or relationship to service.

The Board has determined that the Veteran's current bilateral hearing loss and tinnitus are causally related to his military service, including exposure to noise during active duty.

The Board has determined that the Veteran's bilateral hearing loss is related to his active duty service and granted service connection for this condition.

The Board found that the Veteran's pre-existing right ear hearing loss did not increase in severity during service, and thus denied his claim for service connection.

The Veteran's service-connected bilateral hearing loss has been rated at 10 percent since April 2, 2010. The Board finds that the evidence does not support a higher rating as there is no indication of an exceptional pattern of hearing impairment or other factors warranting an extraschedular evaluation.

The Veteran's service-connected disabilities, when considered separately from any unrelated conditions, do not render him incapable of obtaining and maintaining substantially gainful employment.

The Veteran's appeal is being remanded to the RO for scheduling a Travel Board hearing. The issues include service connection claims and reopening of previously denied claims.