Hearing loss Board decisions

The Veteran's claim for an earlier effective date for a higher rating on his bilateral hearing loss disability was denied. His petition to reopen the cervical spine disability claim was granted, but service connection was still not established.

The Board has remanded the issue of service connection for bilateral hearing loss due to a lack of clarity in the May 2016 VA examination.

The Board has granted service connection for bilateral hearing loss, finding that the Veteran's current hearing loss is at least as likely as not related to his military service.

The Board has granted service connection for tinnitus but has remanded the issue of service connection for bilateral hearing loss due to insufficient medical opinions.

The Veteran's claim for an undiagnosed respiratory disorder is granted as there is objective evidence of a current disability and it is related to his Gulf War service.,Service connection for bilateral hearing loss is denied due to the lack of evidence of a current disability meeting VA criteria.,Service connection for a disorder manifested by chest pain (iritis) is denied as the Veteran's iritis is not considered separate from his already service-connected fibromyalgia.,Service connection for Achilles tendonitis and plantar fasciitis is denied due to these conditions being related to his already service-connected fibromyalgia.,The Veteran's claims for iritis, Achilles tendonitis, and plantar fasciitis are not granted as there is no evidence of a separate disability.

The Veteran's right ear hearing loss is granted as service connected, but his left ear hearing loss does not meet the criteria for a VA disability rating.

The Veteran's application to reopen service connection for left ear hearing loss was granted. Service connection for right ear hearing loss was denied, and tinnitus was granted as incurred in service.

The Board has granted a TDIU rating effective December 13, 2020. The claim for an earlier effective date prior to December 13, 2020 is remanded due to the need for referral to the Director of Compensation Service for consideration of an extraschedular TDIU.

The Veteran's claims of service connection for depression/anxiety, a right knee condition, and initial increased disability ratings for his service-connected lumbosacral strain with degenerative arthritis and IVDS, and bilateral hearing loss are dismissed. The Veteran's claims for an initial increased disability rating in excess of 10 percent for right lower extremity sciatic radulopathy and left lower extremity sciatic radulopathy are also dismissed.

The Board dismissed the Veteran's appeals for increased ratings of hemorrhoids and hearing loss, and granted service connection for PTSD. The lumbar spine disability appeal is remanded.

The Board has remanded the Veteran's claims for right ear hearing loss, skin disorder (claimed as skin cancer on head), and respiratory disorder (emphysema) due to potential issues with service connection.

The Veteran's service-connected bilateral hearing loss is being remanded for a new examination to assess the current severity of his condition. The TDIU claim is also being remanded as it is inextricably intertwined with the hearing loss rating issue.

The Veteran's service-connected bilateral hearing loss warrants a compensable rating, and the Board has also remanded for an examination to assess his dizziness and loss of equilibrium.

The Board denied the Veteran's claims for service connection for bilateral hearing loss, hypothermia of the lower and upper extremities, and an acquired psychiatric disorder secondary to hypothermia. The decision found that new evidence did not support reopening the claim for bilateral hearing loss, and there was no evidence of a cold injury in service related to hypothermia.

The Board has denied the Veteran's claims for service connection for bilateral hearing loss and tinnitus, finding that there is no evidence of a chronic disability in service or continuity of symptomatology since service. The Board also found that the Veteran's current conditions are not related to his in-service noise exposure.

The Veteran's service-connected disabilities have precluded him from securing and following a substantially gainful occupation, leading to the grant of a TDIU on an extraschedular basis.

The Veteran's service-connected disabilities did not render him unable to secure or follow a substantially gainful occupation prior to February 25, 2015.

The Board has granted service connection for bilateral hearing loss and remanded the issue of a compensable disability rating for umbilical hernia.

The Veteran's bilateral hearing loss disability has been rated as noncompensable due to the severity of his hearing acuity, which is no worse than Level II in the right ear and Level IV in the left ear.

The Veteran's bilateral hearing loss has been evaluated as noncompensable, with the most recent VA examination showing hearing acuity levels of Level II in both ears. The Board found that this level does not warrant a compensable rating.