Hearing loss decisions — 2023

The Board denied the Veteran's claim for service connection for bilateral hearing loss as there was no evidence of a current disability meeting VA criteria.

The Veteran's claim for an earlier effective date for service connection of bilateral hearing loss is denied as the earliest possible effective date is November 17, 2022.

The Board has decided that the Veteran's claim of service connection for bilateral hearing loss should be remanded due to inadequate medical opinion.

The Board has remanded the case due to a lack of VA examination and missing service personnel records, which could affect the determination of whether the Veteran's current bilateral hearing loss is related to his military service.

The Board has decided to remand the Veteran's claims for bilateral hearing loss and tinnitus due to incomplete service treatment records, specifically a missing separation examination. The RO must obtain this record and provide addendum opinions regarding the etiology of the Veteran's hearing loss and tinnitus.

The Board denied service connection for right ear hearing loss and sinusitis as there is no current diagnosis of these conditions, with the exception of a confirmed diagnosis of allergic rhinitis/chronic sinusitis in one private evaluation. The Veteran's symptoms were attributed to her service-connected allergic rhinitis.

The Veteran withdrew their appeals for bilateral hearing loss and dysthymic disorder, leading to the dismissal of these issues.

The Board has granted service connection for bilateral hearing loss and tinnitus, finding that the Veteran's symptoms began during his military service and have continued since.

The Board has remanded the case due to insufficient medical opinion regarding the etiology of the Veteran's bilateral hearing loss, which is related to in-service noise exposure.

The Veteran withdrew his appeals on the issues of bilateral hearing loss and an increased rating for hypertension.

The Veteran's right shoulder strain, bilateral pes cavus, bilateral hearing loss, and tinnitus are all rated at the maximum allowable under their respective diagnostic codes. The Board denied his claims for increased ratings as they do not meet the criteria for a higher rating.

The Veteran's claim for service connection for a bilateral hearing loss disability is remanded due to a missed VA examination. The case will be rescheduled for an audiometric evaluation and the relationship between the hearing loss and service will be determined.

The Veteran's TBI is found to be related to his active military service and has been granted service connection.

The Board has granted service connection for tinnitus but denied service connection for bilateral hearing loss. The decision found that the Veteran's tinnitus is related to in-service noise exposure, while his bilateral hearing loss did not meet VA criteria for a disability.

The Board has granted service connection for bilateral hearing loss, tinnitus, and a left shoulder disability. The decision finds that the Veteran's current conditions are at least as likely as not related to his military service.

The Veteran's adjustment disorder with mixed anxiety and depressed mood, chronic, is granted as service-connected. Bilateral hearing loss and residuals of jaw fracture are denied. Hypertension and obstructive sleep apnea are remanded for further examination and opinion regarding their relationship to service.

The Board has remanded the cases for further development and examination, including obtaining VA treatment records and scheduling a VA examination to assess the Veteran's sleep apnea and bilateral hearing loss.

The Veteran's service-connected PTSD with major depressive disorder rendered him unable to secure or maintain substantially gainful employment from December 31, 2015. From March 28, 2017, the Veteran's award of TDIU was predicated on PTSD alone and his additional service-connected disabilities were independently ratable at 60 percent or more.

The Board has determined that an additional remand is needed due to the lack of clarity in the standard used during the Veteran's 1967 and 1969 hearing examinations. The case will be returned for further review with a new examination by a VA clinician who must clarify the standard and convert any ASA test results to ISO/ANSI units.

The Veteran's claims for bilateral hearing loss, vision loss, and various musculoskeletal conditions have been denied. The Board found no new evidence to reopen the claim for bilateral hearing loss and concluded that there is no current disability for VA compensation purposes. For other conditions, the evidence did not establish a link between service and the claimed disabilities.