Hearing loss decisions — 2019

The Veteran's appeal is remanded due to issues related to his need for aid and attendance of another person as a result of service-connected residuals of traumatic brain injury. The specific conditions include PTSD, CAD, tinnitus, and hearing loss in both ears.

The Board has granted service connection for degenerative arthritis of the lumbar spine, bilateral hearing loss disability, and tinnitus. The evidence is in equipoise regarding whether these conditions are related to service.

The Veteran's service-connected bilateral hearing loss disability has not met the criteria for a compensable rating during the period on appeal.

The Board has granted service connection for tinnitus and bilateral hearing loss disability, finding that the evidence is at least in equipoise as to whether these conditions are related to service.,Service connection was also granted for colon cancer, but denied due to lack of a link between the condition and service or exposure to herbicide agents.

The Board has remanded the claims for service connection for bilateral hearing loss and tinnitus due to insufficient evidence. The Veteran is presumed to have incurred these conditions in service, but a VA examination is needed to determine their etiology.

The Board has remanded the claims for bilateral hearing loss, anxiety, and depression due to insufficient evidence regarding the nature of the Veteran's hearing loss and psychiatric conditions. The VA will obtain relevant medical records and conduct a VA examination to determine if these conditions are related to service or secondary to tinnitus.

The Veteran's bilateral hearing loss disability is currently rated at 50 percent, effective March 16, 2018. The Board found that the evidence did not support a higher rating for any period.

The Board has decided to remand the cases of bilateral hearing loss disability and tinnitus for further development due to inadequate VA opinions regarding noise exposure during service.

The Veteran's service-connected anxiety disorder is considered in assigning the rating for his current disability. The claim for an acquired psychiatric disorder other than PTSD, bilateral hearing loss, and tinnitus was denied.

The Board denied the Veteran's claims for service connection of right and left knee disabilities, as well as left ear hearing loss due to lack of new and material evidence.

The Veteran's claim for service connection for hearing loss is denied as he does not have a current bilateral hearing loss disability.,The Veteran's claim for a rating in excess of 10 percent for left ankle arthritis is denied due to lack of limitation of motion and no evidence of pain or other symptoms that would warrant higher ratings under the applicable diagnostic codes.,The Veteran's claim for nonservice-connected pension benefits is denied as he did not serve during a period of war, nor was his service connected with any disability.,The Veteran's claim for service connection for tinnitus is remanded to obtain additional VA and private treatment records that may be pertinent to the claim.,The Veteran's claim for service connection for right wrist sprain is remanded to obtain an addendum medical opinion from the March 2017 VA examiner regarding whether any preexisting right distal radius fracture was aggravated by active duty service.,The Veteran's claim for service connection for obstructive sleep apnea is remanded to obtain additional VA and private treatment records that may be pertinent to the claim.

The Board has granted service connection for tinnitus and a bilateral hearing loss disability, finding that the Veteran's conditions were incurred during his active duty training (ACDUTRA) service.

The Board has remanded the case due to issues related to the reduction in the evaluation for bilateral hearing loss and the assignment of an effective date.

The Veteran's claims for service connection for tinnitus and right ear hearing loss were granted effective July 31, 2012.,An earlier effective date for the awards of service connection for tinnitus and right ear hearing loss is denied.

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

The Veteran's clothing allowance for bilateral knee braces is granted, as the evidence shows he used these braces due to service-connected disabilities that caused wear and tear on his outergarments.

The Board denied the Veteran's claims for a compensable rating for bilateral perforated tympanic membranes and increases in staged ratings for bilateral hearing loss. The Board found that the current ratings under the applicable VA schedules adequately reflected the Veteran's symptoms.

The Board has granted the Veteran's claim of service connection for bilateral hearing loss disability and remanded the issue of service connection for a dental disability. The decision on the hearing loss disability is mixed, as some issues were granted while others were not.

The Veteran's claim for service connection for left ear hearing loss has been reopened, and the appeal is granted to this extent. The appeals for service connection for acoustic neuroma, left eye disorder, balance disorder, diabetes mellitus, right ear hearing loss, tinnitus, and psychiatric disorder are all remanded.

The Board has remanded the Veteran's claims for service connection due to incomplete records and unclear diagnoses. The issues of service connection are inextricably intertwined with the issue of service connection for an acquired psychiatric disability.