Hearing loss decisions — 2021

The Veteran withdrew his appeal for service connection of bilateral hearing loss, and the Board dismissed it.

The Veteran's claim for a higher rating for bilateral hearing loss is denied.,The Veteran's claim for an earlier effective date for the 10 percent rating of bilateral hearing loss is denied.,The Veteran's claims for service connection for headaches disability and hypertension are remanded due to inadequate medical opinions.,The Veteran's claim for service connection for a right knee disability is remanded due to inadequate medical opinion.,Service connection for a right knee disability secondary to the service-connected left knee disability is remanded.

The Board has granted service connection for tinnitus. The cases of thyroid disease, bladder cancer, cervical spine disability, sleep apnea, and bilateral hearing loss are remanded.

The Board has granted service connection for RIGHT ear hearing loss disability due to hazardous noise exposure during Army National Guard service from 1980 to 1989. Service connection was also granted for LEFT ear hearing loss disability, which is considered aggravated by the same noise exposure.

The Veteran's service connection claims for bilateral hearing loss and bilateral pes planus have been denied as there is no probative medical evidence linking the current conditions to his military service.

The Board denied service connection for an acquired psychiatric disorder, sleep apnea, and erectile dysfunction. However, it granted service connection for headaches (secondary to hypertension and tinnitus) and bilateral hearing loss. The Veteran's level of hearing loss did not meet the criteria for a disability rating higher than 10 percent.

The Veteran's spouse was recognized as a dependent on his disability compensation award effective March 23, 2018. The Board granted an earlier effective date of March 1, 2007 for the addition of the spouse to the Veteran's award.

The Board has granted service connection for bilateral hearing loss and tinnitus, finding that the current disabilities are at least as likely as not related to the appellant's military service.

The Board has remanded the claims for bilateral plantar fasciitis, bilateral hearing loss, tinnitus, right hand condition (including carpal tunnel syndrome), and sleep apnea due to issues with the evidence considered and need for additional medical opinions.

The Board has remanded the claims for bilateral hearing loss and tinnitus due to insufficient reasoning in the original decision, specifically regarding delayed onset hearing loss and late-onset noise-induced tinnitus.

The Board has remanded the case due to an inadequate VA medical examination and a need for further review of whether the Veteran's hearing loss is related to service.

The Board has determined that the Veteran's bilateral hearing loss is causally related to service exposure to noise, and thus grants his claim for service connection.

The Board has granted the Veteran's claims for service connection for tinnitus and bilateral hearing loss, finding that there is at least a 50% likelihood that these conditions are related to his in-service noise exposure.

The Board has remanded the case due to a pre-decisional error in not developing the issue of entitlement to a Total Disability Rating Based on Individual Unemployability (TDIU). The Veteran's employment history is unclear, and the TDIU application and employment information were submitted after May 2019.

The Veteran's service-connected disabilities do not include any back or knee conditions, nor does he have a skin condition due to a service-connected disability. Therefore, clothing allowances for the benefit year 2019 are denied.

The Veteran's claim for special monthly compensation based on the need for aid and attendance has been granted. The housebound claim is dismissed due to the grant of SMC by reason of regular need for aid and attendance. The claims for increased evaluations for coronary artery disease and left knee arthroscopy are remanded.

The Veteran's service-connected disabilities rendered him unable to secure and maintain substantially gainful employment as of December 26, 2007. The Board granted effective dates for TDIU and DEA benefits based on this determination.

The Board has granted service connection for tinnitus but has remanded the issue of service connection for bilateral hearing loss due to incomplete examination and lack of consideration of submitted medical articles.

The Veteran's claim for service connection for tinnitus is granted, as the evidence is in equipoise regarding whether it was incurred during service.,Service connection for bilateral hearing loss is denied because there is no medical evidence showing a significant threshold shift beyond normal variability while in service.

The Board denied the Veteran's claim for TDIU on an extraschedular basis prior to December 4, 2019, finding that his service-connected disabilities alone did not prevent him from obtaining and maintaining substantially gainful employment.