Hearing loss decisions — 2015

The Board has granted a 20% disability rating for bilateral hearing loss effective June 3, 2014. The Veteran's hearing impairment was found to be consistent with this rating level based on the VA and private audiometric evaluations conducted in August 2011 and June 2014.

The Veteran does not have hearing loss, tinnitus, or a respiratory disability that is related to his service. His claims for these conditions are denied.

The Board found that the appellant's bilateral hearing loss is not related to his period of active duty for training and denied his claim for service connection.

The Board has determined that the Veteran's bilateral hearing loss disability is related to his military service, specifically noise exposure during active duty. The claim for service connection is granted.

The Board denied the Veteran's claims for service connection for bilateral hearing loss, tinnitus, and an acquired psychiatric disorder, including PTSD. The decision found that there was no evidence of a current disability in any of these conditions.

The Veteran's initial ratings for bilateral hearing loss and tinnitus have been denied as they are already at the maximum schedular rating.

The Veteran's bilateral hearing loss disability was granted an initial rating of 20 percent effective February 25, 2014.

The Board has determined that new and material evidence has been received to reopen the Veteran's claim for service connection for right ear hearing loss. The Board finds that the Veteran's preexisting right ear hearing loss was aggravated during his active duty service, warranting service connection.

The Board has remanded the claims due to deficiencies in a previous VA examination, and new evidence is needed before service connection can be determined.

The most probative evidence does not link the Veteran's claimed bilateral hearing loss and tinnitus to his service. The VA examiner found no evidence of hearing loss or tinnitus in service, and the Veteran reported that he did not seek treatment for these conditions until after service.

The Veteran's tinnitus was found to be incurred in service, and the Board granted service connection for this condition. The hearing loss disability is not related to service.

The Veteran's bilateral hearing loss was not related to his active service, and the Board found that he did not have a preexisting condition.

The Board has dismissed the appeal due to the death of the appellant.

The Veteran's bilateral hearing loss has been rated at 10 percent since July 2010. The Board found that the evidence did not support a higher rating, as his pure tone thresholds and speech recognition scores were within the range for a 10 percent evaluation.

The Veteran's appeal is being remanded for additional examinations and development due to insufficient evidence regarding the relationship between his current disabilities and service.

The Veteran's hearing loss has been rated as 10 percent disabling bilaterally, based on the average pure tone threshold and speech recognition scores.

The Veteran's hearing loss is related to service, and the Board has granted service connection for this condition.

The Board has dismissed the appeal of the issue of entitlement to service connection for degenerative disc disease C5-6 due to withdrawal by the Veteran. The claim of bilateral hearing loss is denied as there is no evidence of a current disability in either ear that meets VA's definition of hearing loss.

The Veteran's claim for service connection for bilateral hearing loss is being remanded due to the need for additional development, including obtaining medical records and arranging for a VA examination.

The Veteran's bilateral hearing loss and tinnitus were not incurred in or aggravated by service. The Board found no nexus between the current disabilities and service.