Hearing loss Board decisions

The Board has determined that the Veteran's right ear hearing loss disability is related to his noise exposure during military service, and therefore grants service connection for this condition. However, there is no evidence of left ear hearing loss in service or within one year post-service, so service connection for a left ear hearing loss disability is denied.

The Board has determined that the Veteran's claims for service connection of bilateral lower extremity peripheral neuropathy, bilateral hearing loss, tinnitus (reopened), skin cancer, and diabetes mellitus are not supported by competent evidence. The conditions were either not shown to be related to service or did not manifest until years after service.

The Veteran's claim of entitlement to an initial compensable evaluation for bilateral hearing loss is being remanded due to the need for further examination and consideration of functional effects caused by the hearing disability.

The Board has determined that the Veteran's claimed conditions, including right ear hearing loss, tinnitus, PTSD, bilateral pes planus, bilateral heel spurs, and a bilateral ankle disability, are not related to his military service. The Veteran did not exhibit these conditions in service or within one year after discharge, and there is no evidence of their onset during active duty.

The Veteran's tinnitus, epilepsy, and headaches have been granted service connection. The Veteran is assigned a 10 percent disability rating for his epilepsy, effective from the date of this decision.

The VA determined that the appellant does not have a hearing loss disability for VA purposes and denied his claim for service connection for bilateral hearing loss. The VA also found no etiological link between the appellant's military service and tinnitus, thus denying his claim for service connection for tinnitus.

The Board found that the Veteran's right hip disorder, bilateral hearing loss, and low back disorder were not incurred or aggravated by active service. The preponderance of evidence did not support a finding that these conditions existed prior to service or were related to service.

The Board has determined that the Veteran's heart disorder was not incurred in or aggravated by active military service, nor may it be presumed to have been incurred therein. The Veteran's current bilateral hearing loss is also not related to his service and a new VA examination is needed as evidence of worsening since the last evaluation.

The Board denied the Veteran's claims for service connection for degenerative changes of the lumbar spine, an initial compensable rating for bilateral hearing loss, and a higher rating for tinnitus.

The VA denied the Veteran's claims for service connection for right ear hearing loss and tinnitus, finding that there was no current diagnosis of these conditions for VA purposes.

The Board found that the veteran's current bilateral hearing loss disability was not incurred or aggravated during service and denied his claim for service connection.

The Board has determined that the Veteran's bilateral hearing loss and tinnitus are related to his in-service noise exposure, granting service connection for these conditions.

The Board has determined that the Veteran's claims for service connection for bilateral hearing loss and Meniere's disease have been denied as there is no evidence to support these conditions were incurred or aggravated by active service.

The Board found that the Veteran's bilateral hearing loss and hypertension did not originate in service, were not aggravated by active service, and were not related to any incident during active service. Therefore, the claims for service connection were denied.

The Board has denied the Veteran's claims to reopen his service connection claims for bilateral hearing loss, tinnitus, and heart disease as new and material evidence was not provided.

The Board found that the Veteran's in-service noise exposure and post-service hearing loss are linked, granting service connection for bilateral hearing loss.

The Veteran's hearing loss and PTSD are not rated higher than the current levels, with his hearing loss remaining non-compensable and his PTSD rated at 30 percent.

The Board denied the Veteran's claim for an earlier effective date for service connection of bilateral hearing loss and tinnitus, finding that no legal or factual basis existed to grant the benefit.

The Board has remanded the case for additional development, including consideration of extraschedular evaluation due to marked interference with employment.

The Board has determined that the Veteran's current bilateral hearing loss is related to his in-service noise exposure, and grants service connection for this disability.