Hearing loss Board decisions

The Veteran's service-connected disabilities, specifically his anxiety disorder and bilateral hearing loss, render him unable to secure or follow substantially gainful employment.

The Board has decided to remand the case for additional development, including obtaining service personnel records and a VA examination for bilateral hearing loss. The Veteran's claims for service connection will be readjudicated after these actions.

The Board has remanded the case due to incomplete VA audiology records and a need for new examinations of the Veteran's bilateral hearing loss and posttraumatic disequilibrium.

The Veteran's appeal is being remanded due to the need for additional medical records and a VA examination. The effective date of his 100% rating for coronary artery disease needs clarification, and he may be scheduled for an audiometric evaluation to determine if his hearing loss is related to service.

The Board has granted service connection for PTSD and denied an initial compensable rating for bilateral hearing loss.

The Board has determined that the Veteran's bilateral hearing loss and tinnitus are not related to his active duty service, and therefore denied both claims.

The Veteran withdrew all his pending appeals, including those for increased rating for PTSD, service connection for bilateral hearing loss, tinnitus, Gulf War Syndrome-related conditions (including a bilateral knee condition, headaches, joint pain, a neurologic disorder, and a skin rash), and whether new and material evidence has been received to reopen a claim for service connection for a sleep disorder.

The Board has reopened the Veteran's claims for service connection for bilateral hearing loss disability, diabetes mellitus type 2, and Non-Hodgkin's Lymphoma (also claimed as lymphoma), but denied reopening of these claims due to lack of new and material evidence. The case is remanded for further development.

The Veteran's service-connected disabilities, without considering non-service connected conditions, were not so severe as to render him unable to secure or follow a substantially gainful occupation. The Veteran does not have a disability rated at 100% and has not been otherwise rendered in need of regular aid and attendance based on his service-connected disabilities.

The Board has determined that additional development is needed to address the Veteran's claim for service connection for bilateral hearing loss, including obtaining his Reserve records and VA treatment records.

The Board has determined that the AOJ did not substantially complete the remand directives and finds another remand is required to address the Veteran's claims for service connection for bilateral hearing loss disability and tinnitus.

The Veteran's service-connected tinnitus has been assigned a maximum 10 percent evaluation, which is the highest available under applicable criteria. His service-connected bilateral hearing loss does not meet the criteria for any compensable rating.,The Board finds that there is no evidence of record showing that the Veteran's current lumbar spine disorder was incurred during his military service or within one year thereafter.

The Veteran was not found to be unable to secure or follow substantially gainful employment due to his service-connected disabilities from April 1, 2006 to August 2, 2011.

The Board has determined that the evidence is in equipoise, finding that the Veteran's bilateral hearing loss and tinnitus are related to his active duty service. As such, service connection for these conditions is granted.

The Board found that the Veteran's current bilateral hearing loss is less likely than not caused by or a result of acoustic trauma during his military service, and more likely secondary to post-service occupational noise exposure. The claims for coronary artery disease/ischemic heart disease and chronic respiratory disability resulting from VA treatment were granted.

The Veteran's service-connected disabilities do not render him unable to secure or follow substantially gainful employment.

Service connection is granted for bilateral hearing loss and tinnitus.,Service connection is denied for sinusitis and a bilateral knee disability.

The Veteran's bilateral hearing loss disability has been rated at 80 percent since June 29, 2012. The Board finds that the evidence does not support a higher rating for any period during the appeal.

The Board has determined that the Veteran's spontaneous pneumothorax of the right lung is not related to his in-service left lung collapse and thus denied service connection for this condition. The issue of service connection for bilateral hearing loss disability was also remanded due to insufficient evidence.

The Board denied the Veteran's claims of entitlement to service connection for bilateral hearing loss, tinnitus, right ankle condition, left ankle condition, and low back condition. The appeals were based on direct service connection.