Hearing loss Board decisions

The Board has remanded the case for additional development, including a VA examination to determine the etiology of the Veteran's asthma and for consideration of her claim of service connection for bilateral hearing loss.

The Veteran's service-connected disabilities do not preclude him from participating in any substantially gainful employment.

The Board denied service connection for hearing loss and tinnitus, as well as found no new and material evidence to reopen the claim for residuals of an eye injury. The Veteran's right upper and lower extremity neuropathy was rated at 10 percent each.,The rating reduction for non-Hodgkin's lymphoma from 100 percent to non-compensable effective October 1, 2009 was found proper.

The Veteran's claims for service connection for bilateral hearing loss disability and bilateral tinnitus are both granted. The Board finds that the Veteran has credible reports of ringing in his ears since service, establishing chronicity of the disorder which was later diagnosed as tinnitus. Service connection is also granted for tinnitus.

The Veteran's initial evaluations for bilateral hearing loss prior to December 2, 2009 were denied as his hearing did not meet the criteria for a compensable evaluation. For the period since December 2, 2009, he was granted an initial evaluation of 10 percent for each ear.

The Board has determined that a new VA examination is needed to assess the Veteran's hearing loss disability and determine its relationship to his service, as well as reconcile the discrepancies in clinical findings.

The Veteran withdrew his appeal of the issue regarding a rating in excess of 10 percent for bilateral hearing loss.

The Veteran's bilateral hearing loss has been rated as noncompensable due to the auditory acuity levels in both ears meeting Roman Numeral I, which corresponds to a 0 percent rating under Diagnostic Code 6100.

The Board has determined that the Veteran does not currently suffer from bilateral hearing loss or tinnitus for VA rating purposes, and thus service connection is denied.

The Veteran's appeal is remanded due to his request for a videoconference hearing. His claim of entitlement to an increased evaluation for bilateral hearing loss remains pending.

The Veteran's service-connected disabilities did not meet the criteria for DIC benefits under 38 U.S.C.A. § 1318, as he was not continuously rated totally disabled for a period of at least 10 years prior to his death.

The Board has determined that a new opinion and possible examination are necessary to determine the etiology of the Veteran's diagnosed bilateral hearing loss disability, as the basis for the May 2011 VA examiner's opinion is insufficient.

The Veteran's claims for service connection for bilateral hearing loss and vertigo, also claimed as Meniere's disease, are being remanded due to the need for additional medical opinions regarding the relationship between his current conditions and his military service.

The Veteran's bilateral hearing loss is currently evaluated as 10 percent disabling, and the Board finds that this evaluation is appropriate based on his audiometric test results. The Veteran's tinnitus is also currently evaluated as 10 percent disabling.

The Board has granted service connection for bilateral hearing loss and tinnitus, finding that the evidence is at least in equipoise as to whether these conditions are related to noise exposure during active duty.

The Board has granted the Veteran's claim of entitlement to service connection for bilateral hearing loss. The appeal for tinnitus was dismissed as the Veteran withdrew his appeal during a July 2015 travel Board hearing.

The Board has determined that the Veteran does not meet the criteria for service connection for any of the conditions listed in his claims, and therefore denied all of them.

The Veteran is entitled to a TDIU prior to March 12, 2015, due to his service-connected PTSD and bilateral hearing loss.

The Board has determined that new and material evidence has not been presented to reopen the claim for service connection for bilateral hearing loss, as the additional evidence does not relate to an unestablished fact necessary to substantiate the claim.

The Board found that the Veteran does not have bilateral hearing loss as a result of any incident during his active service and denied his claim for service connection.