Hearing loss Board decisions

The Board has determined that the veteran's tinnitus is likely related to his service exposure to noise, and thus grants service connection for this condition. The hearing loss claim requires further development as it involves a complex medical opinion regarding onset and etiology.

The Board has determined that the veteran does not have a current disability for which service connection can be granted, specifically bilateral hearing loss and myopia/presbyopia. The adjustment disorder with depressed mood claim is also denied.

The Board denied the veteran's claims for service connection for bilateral hearing loss, gastroesophageal reflux disorder (GERD), and a respiratory disability. The claim for degenerative joint disease and multiple joint pain was also addressed but is being remanded.

The Board has determined that additional development is needed to determine if the veteran's current bilateral hearing loss and tinnitus are related to his military service. The case is therefore being remanded for further examination and opinion.

The Board has determined that a VA audiological examination is needed to determine if the veteran currently has hearing loss disability in either ear. If confirmed, the examiner will be asked whether it is at least as likely as not that the veteran's hearing loss began during service or is causally related to any incident of service, including acoustic trauma.

The Board has determined that the veteran's right sensorineural hearing loss is not proximately due to, or a result of his service-connected diabetes mellitus.

The Board has reopened multiple service connection claims but denied the underlying claims on the merits. The veteran's TMJ dysfunction claim is granted, while his other claims are denied.

The VA determined that the veteran's current bilateral hearing loss is not related to his military service and denied his claim for service connection.

The Board has determined that the veteran's left ear hearing loss, which is service-connected and rated as noncompensable since October 1, 2006, does not warrant an increased rating.

The veteran seeks service connection for an anxiety disorder due to his service-connected bilateral hearing loss and tinnitus. The January 2007 VA examination concluded that the current depression was unlikely related to his hearing loss, but a September 2008 VA physician's assistant opinion found it related to his service-connected hearing loss and tinnitus. Further development is needed.

The veteran's claim for a compensable initial rating for bilateral hearing loss was denied, and his claim for service connection for PTSD remains unresolved.

The VA determined that the veteran's bilateral hearing loss does not warrant an increased rating beyond the current noncompensable (zero percent) disability rating.

The Board has determined that the veteran's service-connected bilateral hearing loss does not warrant a compensable disability rating at any time since the effective date of the grant of service connection.

The Board denied service connection for bilateral hearing loss and tinnitus, finding that the evidence did not establish a nexus between current hearing loss or tinnitus and active service.

The Board denied the veteran's claims for increased ratings for his bilateral hearing loss, finding that the current evaluations adequately reflect the clinically established impairment.

The Board found no evidence of a current left ear hearing loss disability, presbyopia, or color vision defect due to service. The veteran's current conditions are not considered to be related to his military service.

The VA denied service connection for bilateral hearing loss and tinnitus, finding that there is no evidence of a relationship between these conditions and the veteran's military service.

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

The veteran's claims of entitlement to service connection for bilateral hearing loss and tinnitus were denied as there is no evidence of a current disability. The claim of entitlement to service connection for a pulmonary condition, to include as secondary to asbestosis, was also denied due to lack of in-service event or disease.

The veteran's claims for increased ratings and service connection were denied. The hiatal hernia claim was not granted a higher rating, the bilateral hearing loss claim did not meet the criteria for a compensable evaluation, and neither diverticulitis nor colon polyps or pneumonia were found to be related to service.