Hearing loss decisions — 2017

The Veteran's conductive hearing loss disability was rated at 10 percent prior to January 18, 2016 and increased to 10 percent thereafter. The Board found that the evidence did not support a higher rating based on the severity of his condition or its impact on daily life.

The Board has reopened the claim of service connection for bilateral hearing loss and remanded it for further development.

The Veteran's claim for an increased rating for bilateral hearing loss was denied as his most recent audiometric results did not meet the criteria for a compensable evaluation.

The Board has determined that the Veteran's current bilateral hearing loss and tinnitus are not related to his active duty service, as there is no persuasive medical evidence linking these conditions to noise exposure during service.

The Board has determined that the Veteran's bilateral hearing loss and tinnitus did not manifest during service or within one year of separation, and are unrelated to any noise exposure in service. Therefore, the claims for service connection have been denied.

The Board has remanded the case for further development, including obtaining additional service records and arranging for VA examinations to determine if the Veteran's hearing loss and left knee disability are related to his military service.

The Veteran's claims for service connection and increased ratings have been denied. Service connection was not established for hearing loss, low back disorder, or left eye disorder. Increased rating claims were also denied.

The Board has determined that the Veteran's bilateral hearing loss does not meet the criteria for a rating in excess of 10 percent prior to February 22, 2016 and in excess of 20 percent on and thereafter. The preponderance of evidence is against awarding higher ratings.

The Board denied the Veteran's claims for service connection for various conditions, including bilateral hearing loss, lumbar spine disability, bilateral knee disabilities, venous insufficiency, hypertension, sleep apnea, and morbid obesity. The decision found that there was no evidence of a nexus between these conditions and service.

The Veteran's appeal is being remanded for a new VA examination to assess the current severity of his service-connected bilateral hearing loss, and for any outstanding VA treatment records to be secured.

The Board has determined that the Veteran's service-connected left ear hearing loss does not present such an exceptional or unusual disability picture with marked interference with employment or frequent periods of hospitalization, and therefore, a compensable disability rating on an extraschedular basis is denied.

The Veteran's bilateral hearing loss is found to have had its onset in or be related to his period of active service, and the Board grants service connection for this condition.

The Veteran was found unable to secure and maintain substantially gainful employment due to his service-connected disabilities from November 28, 2007, to October 27, 2010.

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

The Veteran's bilateral hearing loss has been rated as 10 percent disabling since August 20, 2016. The Board found that the evidence did not warrant a higher rating prior to this date.

The Board found that the Veteran's current bilateral hearing loss disability is not related to his military service, as there was no evidence of a nexus between in-service noise exposure and the development of the condition. The claim for service connection was therefore denied.

The Veteran's initial claim for an increased rating for bilateral hearing loss prior to May 2, 2008 was granted. The Veteran is currently rated as noncompensable for this period.

The Board found no evidence of a current disability for the claimed conditions and determined that service connection was not warranted based on direct service connection.

The Veteran's claim for service connection for left ear hearing loss was denied as he does not have a hearing loss disability for VA purposes. The claim of entitlement to a 10 percent evaluation based on multiple noncompensable service-connected disabilities is remanded.

The Veteran's claims for service connection for bilateral hearing loss and tinnitus were received on July 20, 2011. The effective date of the grant of service connection is set at that date.,The Veteran's current disability ratings for bilateral hearing loss (noncompensable) and tinnitus (10%) are not higher than what was assigned.