Hearing loss Board decisions

The Board has granted the Veteran's claim for service connection for bilateral hearing loss, finding that it is directly related to noise exposure during his active military service.

The Board denied the Veteran's claim for a TDIU on an extraschedular basis, finding that his service-connected disabilities do not preclude him from obtaining and maintaining substantially gainful employment.

The Board has denied the Veteran's claims for service connection for right ear and left ear hearing loss, finding no current disability of either condition for VA purposes. The Board also found that there is insufficient evidence to establish a nexus between any current hearing loss and military service.

The Board has remanded the case due to incomplete development and need for additional medical opinions. The Veteran's hearing loss is being reviewed again with new evidence and a different VA examiner.

The Veteran's claims for service connection for hypertension and an initial compensable disability rating for bilateral hearing loss disability were denied. The Board found that there was no evidence of a nexus between the current disabilities and service.

The Board denied the Veteran's claim for service connection for bilateral hearing loss, finding that there was no evidence of a current disability and that any hearing loss found during service did not meet VA criteria for clinical hearing loss. The Board also noted that the Veteran had conceded noise exposure in service but concluded that his hearing loss is not related to this exposure.

The Veteran's bilateral hearing loss was initially rated noncompensable prior to August 4, 2017. From August 4, 2017 to October 28, 2019, he received a 10% rating for his bilateral hearing loss. After October 28, 2019, the Veteran's hearing loss was rated as noncompensable. The Board also granted TDIU from July 18, 2017 to May 3, 2018.

The Board has remanded the Veteran's claims for bilateral hearing loss, residuals of misdiagnosed urinary tract infection, and erectile dysfunction due to inadequate medical opinions regarding their etiology. The Veteran contends that his current conditions are related to service exposure to noise and/or a misdiagnosis in service.

The Veteran's initial ratings for tinnitus and bilateral hearing loss are denied. The case is remanded to issue a Statement of the Case regarding the issues.

The Veteran's hepatitis C and hair loss claims are remanded due to inadequate medical opinions.,The Veteran's OSA claim is remanded as the examiner failed to consider her prior sleep disturbances.,The Veteran's hypertension claim is remanded because the examiner did not provide a rationale for denying secondary service connection.,The Veteran's gastrointestinal disorder claim is remanded due to insufficient consideration of medical literature cited by the Veteran’s representative.,The Veteran's hearing loss and tinnitus claims are remanded as the examination results were inconsistent and the examiner failed to address relevant medical literature.,The Veteran's dizziness claim is remanded because the examiner did not consider whether her dizziness was a symptom of her service-connected headache disability or a separate disorder.,The Veteran's cervical spine, left hand, bilateral shoulder, hip, knee, and foot disabilities claims are all remanded due to inadequate examination reports that failed to address relevant medical literature and symptoms.

The Board has determined that the Veteran's bilateral hearing loss is related to his in-service noise exposure and grants service connection for this condition.

The Board has dismissed the appeals for service connection for bilateral hearing loss, and increased ratings for right and left upper extremity neuropathy due to the Veteran's death.

The Board has decided to remand the case due to incomplete records and the need for a new examination to determine if the Veteran currently has bilateral hearing loss disability related to her active service.

The Veteran's petition to reopen the claim of service connection for an acquired psychiatric disorder is granted.,The petition to reopen the claims of service connection for diabetes mellitus, bilateral pes planus, and bilateral plantar fascia are denied.

The Veteran's service-connected disabilities have met the schedular criteria for a TDIU from June 28, 2022. The Board finds that he is unable to secure and follow substantially gainful employment due solely to his service-connected disabilities as of May 1, 2019.

The Board has granted service connection for bilateral hearing loss and tinnitus, finding that the Veteran's current conditions are related to her in-service noise exposure.

The Board has denied the Veteran's claims of service connection for bilateral hearing loss and tinnitus, finding that there is no evidence to support a nexus between these conditions and his in-service noise exposure. The Board concluded that the current disabilities are less likely than not related to his active service.

The Veteran's appeal is remanded due to the need for additional development, including obtaining SSA records that may be pertinent to his TDIU claim.

The Veteran's service-connected disabilities, including right knee instability and degenerative joint disease of the right knee, as well as right ear hearing loss, rendered him unable to secure or maintain substantially gainful employment prior to February 15, 2017. The Board granted TDIU on an extraschedular basis for this period.

The Veteran's claim for increased ratings for bilateral hearing loss prior to September 21, 2022 and from that date was denied. The Board found the evidence did not support a finding of entitlement to a compensable rating prior to September 21, 2022 or a rating in excess of 20 percent thereafter.