Hearing loss decisions — 2018

The Veteran's bilateral hearing loss and tinnitus are granted as service connected. The Veteran is also granted a 10 percent rating for his fractured nose, status-post septorhinoplasty.

The Board has denied service connection for right ear hearing loss due to the absence of a current disability as defined by VA regulations. The Veteran's claim for left ear hearing loss and tinnitus is remanded for further development.

The Board has granted service connection for PTSD, but denied all other claims as new and material evidence was not received to reopen the claims.

The Veteran's tinnitus is found to be related to his military service. However, there is no current diagnosis of bilateral hearing loss that meets VA criteria for a disability.

The Board has reopened the Veteran's claims for service connection for bilateral hearing loss and tinnitus, finding new and material evidence. However, both conditions were denied as there is no credible evidence linking the current disabilities to active duty service.

The Veteran's claim for service connection for left ear hearing loss was denied as there is no evidence of a nexus between her current condition and her military service.

The Veteran's bilateral hearing loss is currently rated at 10 percent, but the evidence does not support a higher evaluation.,The Board found that the Veteran’s service-connected disabilities have rendered him unemployable due to his severe high-frequency hearing loss and associated functional impairments.

The Board has remanded the case due to insufficient evidence regarding service connection for an acquired psychiatric disability, including PTSD. The Veteran's claims of tinnitus and bilateral hearing loss have been denied.

The Board has remanded the Veteran's claims due to new evidence being obtained by VA, and the Veteran did not waive initial consideration of this evidence by the AOJ.

The Board has determined that the Veteran's service-connected disabilities, including chronic rhinosinusitis, perirectal abscess, dizziness, headaches, left ear hearing loss, and scar on the right knee, preclude him from securing or following a substantially gainful occupation.

The Veteran's claims for service connection for bilateral hearing loss and tinnitus are remanded due to incomplete records from his National Guard service. The VA needs to obtain all relevant personnel and treatment records, including those related to periods of active duty for training (ACDUTRA) and inactive duty for training (INACDUTRA).

The Veteran's claims for service connection for various conditions, including bilateral hearing loss, tinnitus, residuals of Rocky Mountain spotted fever, neck disability, sleep apnea, bladder condition (incontinence), and erectile dysfunction, have been denied. The Board found no evidence linking these conditions to active service or events therein.

The Veteran's claims for service connection were reopened and granted for PTSD, other specified trauma- and stressor-related disorder. The claims for peripheral neuropathy of the bilateral upper extremities and bilateral hearing loss remain denied.

The Board denied an extraschedular rating for bilateral hearing loss, finding that the Veteran's symptoms were already contemplated by the existing schedular criteria and did not warrant additional compensation.

The Board has granted service connection for bilateral hearing loss and denied service connection for PTSD. Service connection for a stomach disability is also granted, but only as secondary to medications related to other service-connected conditions.

The Veteran's appeal for increased ratings for bilateral hearing loss has been dismissed as he withdrew his claim prior to the Board making a decision.

The Veteran's initial compensable rating for hearing loss is denied, and a 40 percent disability rating for the neurological disorder of the left upper extremity is granted effective August 24, 2010. The Board has remanded several issues including service connection for back disability, bilateral lower extremity sciatica, and TDIU.

The Veteran's claims for service connection for bilateral hearing loss and a compensable rating for perforated tympanic membrane, right ear were denied. The Board found no new and material evidence to reopen the claim of service connection for bilateral hearing loss and determined that the current noncompensable rating for perforated tympanic membrane, right ear is appropriate.

The Veteran's bilateral hearing loss has been rated as noncompensable (zero percent) throughout the appeal period due to the lack of evidence showing a pattern of exceptional hearing impairment or functional impairment warranting a higher rating.

The Board has determined that the evidence is at least in equipoise regarding whether the Veteran's bilateral hearing loss is related to his military service, and thus grants service connection for this condition.