Hearing loss decisions — 2019

The Veteran's bilateral hearing loss disability is remanded for further examination and opinion to determine if it was aggravated by service or had its onset during service.

The Board denied the Veteran's claims for service connection for bilateral hearing loss and an initial rating in excess of 50 percent for PTSD. The decision found that there was no current hearing loss disability, and the Veteran did not file a timely substantive appeal regarding his PTSD claim.

The Veteran's claim for a higher rating for bilateral hearing loss was denied as his audiometric results did not warrant a rating greater than 10 percent.

The Board has reopened the Veteran's claims of service connection for bilateral hearing loss, an acquired psychiatric disorder (claimed as PTSD), vision loss, migraine headaches, and a left knee disability. However, these claims are remanded due to the need for additional medical examinations.

The Veteran's claims of service connection for low back strain and right ear hearing loss have been granted. The claim for right ear hearing loss was reopened due to new evidence, while the claim for low back strain is remanded for a VA examination.

The Board has determined that the Veteran's bilateral hearing loss and tinnitus are related to his military service, resolving all reasonable doubt in favor of the Veteran.

The Board denied the Veteran's claims of service connection for left leg disability, bilateral knee disability, bilateral hearing loss, and sleep apnea. The evidence did not meet the criteria for service connection on any theory.

The Board denied service connection for bilateral hearing loss and tinnitus as the evidence did not show a relationship to military service.

The Board has reopened the Veteran's claim for service connection for bilateral hearing loss due to new and material evidence. The claim is granted as the evidence is in relative equipoise, showing that the current hearing loss had its onset during service.

The Board has decided to remand the Veteran's claims for hearing loss and tinnitus as they are related to service exposure. Additional evidence is needed, including updated VA treatment records and a medical opinion from an ENT specialist.

The Veteran's claim for an initial compensable disability rating for his service-connected bilateral hearing loss is being remanded due to unclear information from a private audiologist's evaluation in July 2015. The VA needs to clarify whether the Maryland CNC speech discrimination test was used and convert the graphical results into numerical data.

The Board has denied service connection for right ear hearing loss due to a lack of current disability. The claim for left ear hearing loss is remanded for further development.

The Veteran's service connection claims for bilateral hearing loss, chronic left shoulder disability, chronic left knee disability, and chronic right knee disability have been granted. The claim for acquired psychiatric disorder (PTSD and chronic adjustment disorder) is being remanded.,Service connection has been established for the Veteran's chronic left shoulder, left knee, and right knee disabilities as a result of his military service.

The Board denied service connection for an acquired psychiatric disorder and remanded the hearing loss claim.

The Veteran's service connection claims for bilateral hearing loss and bilateral tinnitus have been granted. The Board found that the Veteran was exposed to hazardous noise during his active duty in the United States Air Force, which is considered sufficient evidence of a nexus between his current disabilities and his military service.

The Board has decided to remand the cases for further development due to unclear test results and potential increase in severity of hearing loss.

The Veteran's bilateral hearing loss and tinnitus are found to be related to in-service noise exposure.,His hypertension is found to be related to his service-connected diabetes mellitus, type II.

The Board has determined that the Veteran's bilateral hearing loss does not meet or approximate the criteria for a disability rating in excess of 80 percent.

The Board has determined that the Veteran's bilateral hearing loss and tinnitus are related to his active service. However, the back disability issue is remanded for further development as requested.

The Board has reopened the Veteran's claims for bilateral hearing loss and tinnitus, but has remanded them for additional development due to insufficient evidence regarding their etiology.