Hearing loss decisions — 2016

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

The appeal has been withdrawn by the appellant's representative, thus the case is dismissed.

The Board has determined that the Veteran's right ear hearing loss and tinnitus are related to his military service, with reasonable doubt resolved in favor of the Veteran. The claims for service connection are granted.

The Board found that the Veteran's bilateral hearing loss, hammer toe formation, and onychomycosis are not related to his service. The evidence did not show continuity of symptoms after service or a nexus between current conditions and service.

The Veteran's hearing loss has been rated as noncompensable throughout the appeal period.,Service connection for right and left Achilles tendon ruptures, status post-operative, was not established. The VA examiner found no evidence linking these conditions to service.

The Veteran's claims to service connect hearing loss and tinnitus are reopened, but the case is REMANDED for additional development.

The Board found that the Veteran's bilateral hearing loss and tinnitus did not have onset during active service, were not caused by active service, and denied both claims.

The Veteran's appeal is being remanded due to the submission of new evidence and the need for a VA examination.

The Veteran's appeal is being remanded for a Travel Board hearing. The issues of entitlement to service connection for various conditions are still pending.

The Board finds that the Veteran's bilateral hearing loss is etiologically related to his in-service noise exposure and grants service connection for this condition.

The Board found that the Veteran's right ear hearing loss did not manifest in-service or for many years thereafter and is not related to service.

The Board finds that the Veteran does not have a chronic hearing loss disability in service or for many years thereafter, and that his current bilateral hearing loss is not related to military service. The claim for service connection for bilateral hearing loss is denied.

The Board denied the Veteran's claim for service connection for bilateral hearing loss, finding that there was no evidence of a pre-existing condition in service or any aggravation thereof. The examiner concluded that the Veteran's hearing loss did not begin during his service and is not related to noise exposure.

The Veteran's tinnitus was found to have been incurred in service, and the Board granted service connection for this condition. The claims of service connection for diabetes mellitus type II and bilateral hearing loss disability are remanded.

The Veteran's initial claim for a higher rating for his service-connected bilateral hearing loss was granted, with a 60 percent disability rating effective January 15, 2016. The claims for service connection for squamous cell carcinoma and a bilateral eye disorder were denied.

The Veteran's claim for service connection for bilateral hearing loss is being remanded due to the inadequacy of the January 2016 VA examination, which did not consider conversion of audiometric results to ISO-ANSI standards and did not address the significance of in-service recurrent fungal infections on his current hearing disability.

The Veteran's initial compensable rating for left ear hearing loss has been denied.,The Veteran's gastrointestinal disability (GERD) is not rated higher than the currently assigned 30 percent.

The Board has reopened the Veteran's claims for service connection for bilateral hearing loss, low back disability, and tinnitus. However, these claims are being remanded due to outstanding evidence needed to substantiate the claims.

The Board has determined that new and material evidence has been received to reopen the Veteran's claims of service connection for Type II diabetes mellitus, hypertension, an eye disorder claimed as the result of an undiagnosed illness, a sleep disorder claimed as the result of an undiagnosed illness, and hearing loss. The appeals are therefore remanded.

The Veteran's bilateral hearing loss disability and tinnitus are attributable to service, and the Board finds that service connection is warranted for these conditions.