Hearing loss Board decisions

The Board has remanded the claims for further development and opinion regarding diabetes mellitus, hypertension, back disorder, neck disorder, bilateral hearing loss, and left shoulder disorder. Service connection is denied for an acquired psychiatric disorder.

The Board denied a compensable rating for bilateral hearing loss prior to January 18, 2022 and a rating in excess of 10 percent thereafter. The Veteran's hearing acuity was rated as Level III in the right ear and Level IV in the left ear after January 18, 2022.

The Veteran's claims for service connection for emphysema, erectile dysfunction, and chronic kidney disease are remanded due to the need for additional evidence. The other issues have been addressed with decisions granting or denying service connection.

The appeal for the issue of sickle cell trait was dismissed. The appeals for low back disorder, pes planus, left ankle disorder, inguinal hernia, bilateral hearing loss, and sinusitis are remanded.

The Veteran's claims for increased ratings, service connection, or reopening of previously denied claims have been granted. The case is remanded for further development on some issues.

The Board has remanded the case due to a missed VA hearing for an audiological examination. The Veteran's bilateral hearing loss service connection is still pending and needs further development.

The Board has remanded the cases for additional development due to insufficient opinions regarding the Veteran's hearing loss and skin disability claims.

The Veteran's service connection claim for bilateral hearing loss is denied as the evidence does not support a finding that his current hearing loss began during service or is related to an in-service injury.,Service connection for post-operative left inguinal hernia repair and scar is also denied. The Veteran has no detectable hernia, and his scar is single and painful but not well-supported by a truss.

The Board has remanded the Veteran's claims for service connection due to inadequate opinions regarding whether his service-connected disabilities caused or aggravated his claimed conditions. The issues include sleep apnea, hypertension, diabetes mellitus type II, degenerative disc disease of the lumbar spine, multilevel degenerative disc disease of the cervical spine, basal cell carcinoma, and bilateral hearing loss.

The Veteran's service-connected disabilities do not meet the schedular criteria for a total disability rating based on individual unemployability (TDIU) prior to July 30, 2012. The Board denied the claim as there is insufficient evidence to substantiate a reasonable possibility that the Veteran was unemployable by reason of his service-connected PTSD.

The Board has remanded the case due to insufficient opinions regarding whether the Veteran's left ear hearing loss is related to service, specifically his conceded noise exposure.

The Veteran's petition to reopen claims for service connection for hearing loss and tinnitus was denied. The claim for increased rating for CAD from October 1, 2014 to July 16, 2015 was granted with a 60% disability rating. The claim for increased rating for CAD from November 1, 2015 to May 26, 2021 was denied. Service connection for hypertension is granted due to herbicide exposure under the PACT Act. The claim for secondary service connection for COPD due to CAD was denied.

The Veteran's ischemic heart disease, bilateral hearing loss, and bilateral tinnitus have been granted service connection due to presumed exposure to herbicide agents during his active duty in Vietnam.

The Veteran's initial compensable rating for bilateral hearing loss is being remanded due to the use of outdated VA examination results and a lack of clarity on the speech recognition test used by the private audiologist. The AOJ will arrange for a new VA audiological examination, clarify the speech recognition test used in the August 2018 evaluation, obtain ongoing VA treatment records, and provide the Veteran with the requested audiometric testing data.

The Board has remanded two issues: service connection for cause of death and service connection for bilateral hearing loss (for the purposes of accrued benefits). The AOJ needs to adjudicate these claims before they can be considered by the Board.

The Veteran's appeal for increased ratings for bilateral hearing loss prior to October 6, 2022 and from that date onwards was denied. The Board found the evidence did not warrant a rating in excess of 20 percent prior to October 6, 2022 or in excess of 40 percent thereafter.

The Board granted a 100 percent rating for PTSD prior to July 29, 2013, and dismissed the TDIU claim as moot.

The Veteran's hearing loss is being remanded for extraschedular consideration as it may affect his ability to function under the ordinary conditions of daily life, including employment.

The Veteran's claim for an initial compensable rating for hearing loss was denied because he failed to appear for a VA examination without providing good cause.

The Board denied the Veteran's claim for service connection for a bilateral hearing loss disability, finding that new and material evidence had not been received to reopen the claim.