Hearing loss decisions — 2022

The Veteran withdrew his appeal for service connection for bilateral hearing loss, and the Board dismissed the case as a result.

The Board has remanded the case due to inadequate reasons and bases in denying the Veteran's hearing loss claim. The AOJ is required to provide an addendum opinion regarding whether the current bilateral hearing loss is related to service.

The Board has remanded the claims for tinnitus, bilateral hearing loss, and back condition due to insufficient evidence in the January 2016 VA examination. The Veteran's lay statements will be considered during the remand process.

The Veteran's claims for service connection for bilateral hearing loss and tinnitus are remanded due to the need for additional medical examination.

The Veteran's appeals of his ratings and service connection claims have been dismissed due to his withdrawal of the appeals in July 2020.

The Board denied the Veteran's claims for service connection for a bilateral hearing loss disability and a compensable rating for residuals of fracture to the left 4th metacarpal, finding no evidence of a current disability or sufficient medical basis for the requested ratings.

The appeal pertaining to the issue of entitlement to service connection for bilateral hearing loss is dismissed. The Veteran's appeals for a rating in excess of 70 percent for PTSD with depression and TDIU are remanded.

The Board has remanded the Veteran's claims for service connection due to insufficient evidence and need for further examination. The issues include psychiatric disorders, hypertension, erectile dysfunction, eye disabilities, stroke, lung disabilities, hearing loss, ear, nose, and throat disabilities, and diabetes.

The Veteran's tinnitus is currently rated at the maximum schedular rating of 10 percent. He seeks a higher disability rating.,The Veteran contends that his bilateral hearing loss should have an earlier effective date prior to July 17, 2017.

The Board has remanded the cases for further development due to new evidence and issues that are inextricably intertwined with the other issues.

The Veteran's claims for service connection for an acquired psychiatric disorder, left ear hearing loss, left knee disability, and lower jaw trauma have all been denied. The Board found that the evidence did not support a finding of current disabilities or a causal relationship to service.

The Veteran's bilateral sensorineural hearing loss is currently rated at 30 percent, with no higher ratings granted. The Board found that the evidence did not support a higher rating based on his complaints of difficulty in communication and use of hearing aids.

The Veteran's claim for service connection for bilateral hearing loss is granted. The claim for sinusitis on a direct basis only is denied, and the issue of service connection for ear conditions (including ear infections) is remanded.

The Veteran's service connection claims for bilateral hearing loss and tinnitus were granted. The remaining issues of service connection for esophageal condition, left shoulder disability, and low back disability are remanded.

The Board denied service connection for bilateral hearing loss as the evidence did not show it was related to military service.

The Board denied the Veteran's claims for service connection for a right eye condition and an increased rating for bilateral hearing loss, finding that there was no credible evidence of in-service injury or disease related to these conditions. The Veteran's current ratings for his disabilities are found to be appropriate based on the audiometric evaluations conducted.

The Veteran's bilateral hearing loss was found to be at Level I in both ears, resulting in a noncompensable rating. The Board denied an initial compensable rating for the disability.

The Board has granted service connection for tinnitus, but the issue of service connection for bilateral hearing loss is remanded due to a lack of adequate VA examination.

The Board has denied the Veteran's claims for service connection for bilateral hearing loss and tinnitus, finding that there is no evidence of in-service noise exposure or a nexus to service.

The Veteran's claim for earlier effective date of May 6, 2010 for tinnitus is granted. The issue of service connection for hearing loss is remanded due to a duty to assist error.