Hearing loss Board decisions

The Board has remanded the case for additional development, including obtaining VA treatment records and seeking an opinion on whether the Veteran's hypertension is secondary to his service-connected PTSD. The issue of service connection for left ear hearing loss remains on appeal.

The Veteran's service-connected disabilities, including PTSD, migraine headaches, diabetes mellitus, diabetic peripheral neuropathy of the lower extremities, and tinnitus, are found to be of such severity as to preclude his participation in any substantially gainful employment consistent with his education and occupational experience.

The Board has reopened the claim for service connection for bilateral hearing loss and finds that there is at least an approximate balance of positive and negative evidence regarding whether the Veteran's current bilateral hearing loss disability is related to his period of active duty. The Veteran reported noise exposure during service, but no in-service complaints or audiometric findings were noted. Post-service treatment records indicate a diagnosis of bilateral hearing loss beginning in 2001, with an opinion from Dr. V.P. suggesting that the current hearing loss may be due to initial noise exposure while performing his job duties in service superimposed with presbycusis.

The Board finds that the Veteran's left ear hearing loss is related to her military noise exposure and grants service connection for this disability.

The Veteran's appeal is remanded due to the need for additional VA outpatient records and examination reports. The TDIU claim may be effectively re-raised as it was previously denied.

The Board has denied the Veteran's claims for service connection for bilateral hearing loss and systemic arthritis. The claim for bilateral hearing loss was previously denied in July 1993, but new evidence submitted since then does not raise a reasonable possibility of substantiating the claim. For systemic arthritis, there is no current diagnosis or evidence linking it to service.

The Board has determined that the Veteran does not have a current disability for VA compensation purposes and therefore, service connection for right ear hearing loss is denied.

The Veteran's bilateral hearing loss and tinnitus are found to have developed primarily from noise exposure during his military service.

The Board denied the Veteran's claims for cervical and lumbar spine disabilities in November 2006, but reopened them with new evidence received since then.,Service connection was not established for cervical stenosis with disc protrusions and cord compression or lumbar spine congenital canal stenosis with intervertebral disc syndrome and nerve root impingement.

The Veteran's service-connected disabilities render him unemployable, and the Board grants a TDIU based on his PTSD.

The Board has granted service connection for lumbar degenerative disc disease with mechanical low back pain and left ear hearing loss disability, but denied service connection for a right ear hearing loss disability.

The Veteran's claims for service connection, increased ratings, and new and material evidence have been denied. The Board found no current disability manifested by degenerative arthritis separate from other disabilities on appeal.

The Board finds that the Veteran's bilateral hearing loss and tinnitus are at least as likely as not related to his military service, resolving doubt in his favor.

The Board has decided to remand the case for additional development, including obtaining missing service treatment records and scheduling a VA examination.

The Veteran's appeal for a compensable initial rating for bilateral hearing loss was denied, and his claim for service connection for a skin disability of the left foot is pending. The Board found that there was no schedular basis for granting a compensable rating for the hearing loss.

The Board has granted service connection for tinnitus but denied reopening of the claim for bilateral hearing loss disability due to lack of new and material evidence.

The Veteran's claims for service connection for red cancer on neck, left knee condition, sprain of the right knee, disability of the cervical spine, disability of the lumbar spine, and crushed left foot have been denied. The reduction in evaluation from 100 percent disabling to non-compensably disabling for bilateral hearing loss has also been denied.

The Veteran's claims for hearing loss and tinnitus are being remanded due to inadequate examination and the need for additional evidence. The TDIU claim is also being remanded as VA examinations from July 2013 have not been added to the record.

The Board has determined that the Veteran's bilateral hearing loss and tinnitus are not related to his active duty service, as there is no evidence of in-service noise exposure or current manifestations of these conditions within one year of separation from service. The Veteran's statements regarding in-service noise exposure are considered competent but not credible medical evidence.

The Board has determined that the appellant's current bilateral hearing loss is related to noise exposure during his active duty for training (ACDUTRA) service in 1959, and thus grants service connection for this condition.