Hearing loss decisions — 2025

The Board denied service connection for mid/lower back, right shoulder, right and left knee, bilateral flatfoot, GERD, irritable bowel syndrome (IBS)/irritable colon, and bilateral hearing loss disorders. The claim for CHF was remanded for further development.

The Board denied service connection for bilateral hearing loss as there was no evidence of a current disability that met VA compensation standards.

The Board granted the restoration of a 50 percent rating for bilateral hearing loss and service connection for an acquired psychiatric disorder to include insomnia as secondary to tinnitus.

The Board granted service connection for tinnitus and denied the claims for service connection for bilateral hearing loss, a rating in excess of 20 percent for left shoulder rotator cuff strain, an initial rating in excess of 10 percent for rhinitis, and an initial compensable rating for bronchitis.

The Board denied the Veteran's claim for a compensable disability rating for bilateral hearing loss based on the results of the September 2023 VA examination.

The Board granted service connection for a dermatological disorder, left ear hearing loss, and pulmonary or respiratory disorder, while denying service connection for bilateral iris coloboma, right ear hearing loss, and other disorders.

The Board granted service connection for tinnitus and remanded the claims for bilateral hearing loss, left foot condition, right foot condition, left hand condition, right hand condition, left wrist condition, and right wrist condition.

The Board remands the claim for service connection for bilateral hearing loss to obtain an adequate medical opinion, as the previous one was based on factual inaccuracies and did not adequately address the evidence.

The Board granted service connection for bilateral hearing loss, finding that the evidence is at least in equipoise and cannot be reasonably disassociated from the Veteran's military service.

The Board denied the veteran's claims for service connection for loss of teeth and a compensable rating for bilateral hearing loss.

The Board denied service connection for bilateral hearing loss and hypertension, but granted service connection for tinnitus. The claim for multiple thyroid nodules was also denied.

The appeal for service connection for a thyroid condition and a bilateral foot condition (claimed as cold weather flatfoot) was dismissed due to a prohibited concurrent election. The appeal for right ear hearing loss was denied.

The Board denied service connection for multiple conditions, including bilateral hearing loss, cervical stenosis of the spine, acid reflux, erectile dysfunction, and chronic hemorrhoids. The remaining claims for degenerative joint disease in various parts of the body were remanded for further development.

The veteran withdrew his appeals for service connection for bilateral hearing loss, chronic fatigue syndrome, right elbow lateral epicondylitis, and back pain with bilateral radiculopathy.

The Board remanded the Veteran's claims for service connection for obstructive sleep apnea and bilateral hearing loss due to inadequate medical opinions and pre-decisional duty to assist errors. The case requires new examinations to properly evaluate the nexus between the claimed disabilities and either in-service events, VA treatment, or toxic exposure risk activities.

The Board remands the case for a new medical opinion to determine if the Veteran's hearing loss is caused by or aggravated by his service-connected tinnitus.

The Board remands the matter to obtain a December 2023 VA audiogram and schedule an adequate examination to determine the current severity of the Veteran's service-connected right ear sensorineural hearing loss.

The Board denied service connection for left ear hearing loss and remanded the claims for right ear hearing loss and increased rating for the left knee disability.

The Board granted service connection for right ear hearing loss but denied it for left ear hearing loss.

The Board denied the veteran's claims for earlier effective dates and increased ratings for various disabilities, including erectile dysfunction as a complication of type II diabetes mellitus.