Hearing loss decisions — 2017

The Board has determined that new and material evidence has been received to reopen the claim of entitlement to service connection for left ear hearing loss. The Veteran's current hearing loss in his left ear is related to noise exposure during service, and the Board grants this claim.

The Veteran's claim for increased ratings for bilateral hearing loss has been denied as his current evaluations are consistent with the applicable rating criteria.

The Veteran's bilateral hearing loss is found to be etiologically related to his active service, and the Board grants service connection for this disability.

The Board found that the Veteran's service connection for tinnitus was secondary to his hearing loss, and thus granted service connection for bilateral hearing loss.

The Board found that the Veteran's right ear disorders, including hearing loss, were not related to his period of active service and denied his claim for service connection.

The Board has granted service connection for left ear hearing loss, but the right ear hearing loss claim is remanded due to insufficient evidence.

The Veteran's claims for service connection for bilateral hearing loss, headaches, fatigue, and diabetes have been denied as new and material evidence has not been received to reopen the claim. The Veteran's claim for service connection for undiagnosed Gulf War Syndrome is denied due to lack of a diagnosed disability.

The Board has determined that the Veteran does not have a current right ear hearing loss disability for VA purposes, and thus cannot establish service connection.

The Veteran's claim for service connection for hearing loss is denied as there is no current disability with regards to his claim.

The Veteran's bilateral hearing loss claim was denied, but his left hip arthritis claim has been reopened. The decision on the left hip arthritis is pending as it involves a secondary service connection theory.

The evidence does not support a finding that the Veteran's current bilateral hearing loss disability is related to his military service, including noise exposure during service.

The Board has determined that the Veteran does not have a disability for which service connection is sought. As such, no service connection is granted.

The Veteran's tinnitus is found to have had its onset in service and persisted since, warranting service connection. The issue of bilateral hearing loss remains pending as additional evidence is needed.

The Veteran's bilateral hearing loss is rated at 40 percent as of June 1, 2016. Prior to that date, the disability was not compensable.

The Veteran's left ear hearing loss is service connected. The Board has remanded the issues of service connection for bilateral ankle, knee, shoulder, and lumbar spine disabilities.

The Board has remanded the case for additional development, including obtaining service treatment records for periods of active duty and inactive duty training. The Veteran's claim will be reconsidered after this additional development.

The Board has granted a 40 percent rating for bilateral hearing loss from March 20, 2017, based on the Veteran's puretone threshold results and speech recognition scores.

The Veteran's service-connected bilateral hearing loss has not resulted in a compensable rating since the appeal period began.

The Board has remanded the case due to inadequate examination and failure to consider presumptive service connection for a chronic multisymptom illness.

The Veteran's service-connected disabilities, including PTSD and hypertension associated with PTSD, have rendered him unable to secure or follow substantially gainful employment prior to November 1, 2012.