Hearing loss Board decisions

The Veteran's appeal for increased ratings for tinnitus, bilateral hearing loss disability, obstructive sleep apnea with pleural disease, and fibromyalgia is denied. The VA has remanded the claims of entitlement to a total disability rating based on individual unemployability (TDIU) prior to June 13, 2019.,The Veteran's tinnitus is already at its maximum schedular rating of 10 percent.

The Veteran's bilateral hearing loss and tinnitus are granted as service-connected, with the Board finding that both conditions are related to in-service noise exposure.

The Veteran's claim for service connection for bilateral hearing loss is being remanded due to a duty to assist error. The full results of the October 2019 audiological evaluation need to be obtained.

The Board has determined that the Veteran does not have a current diagnosis of bilateral hearing loss for VA purposes and has denied his claim for service connection. The tinnitus issue is remanded due to a pre-decisional duty to assist error.

The Board denied service connection for bilateral hearing loss and granted service connection for tinnitus. The Veteran did not meet the criteria for a diagnosis of bilateral hearing loss, but his tinnitus was related to military service.

The Board has remanded the claims of entitlement to service connection for bilateral hearing loss and tinnitus due to a pre-decisional duty-to-assist error. The VA medical opinion is inadequate as it did not consider the available evidence, including in-service audiometric data.

The Board has determined that the Veteran's current bilateral hearing loss is related to his military service, specifically his acknowledged in-service noise exposure. Therefore, service connection for this condition is granted.

The Board has remanded the claims for service connection and rating of hearing loss in both ears and a right paratracheal region soft tissue mass due to duty-to-assist errors. Additional evidence is needed, including VA examination reports.

The Board has remanded the claims for bilateral hearing loss, tinnitus, low back disability, cervical spine disability, right knee disability, left knee disability, right leg disability, and left leg disability due to incomplete service treatment records. The Veteran's service connection claims are being returned for further review with additional examinations.

The Board has granted service connection for bilateral hearing loss and tinnitus, finding that the evidence is in equipoise as to whether these conditions are related to military noise exposure. The Veteran's active duty MOS of light weapons infantry was considered highly probable for hazardous noise exposure.

The Veteran's appeal is remanded for further evaluation of his bilateral hearing loss and service connection for an acquired psychiatric disability. The Board notes that the current rating for his hearing loss does not account for his functional impairment due to depression and anxiety caused by wearing hearing aids.

The Board has remanded the issues of service connection for bilateral hearing loss and tinnitus due to in-service noise exposure. The Veteran's STRs do not show any evidence of hearing loss or tinnitus, but post-service treatment records indicate these conditions have been diagnosed.,For tinnitus specifically, the March 2020 VA examination found that it is at least as likely as not related to his service-connected bilateral recurrent tinnitus. The examiner noted there was no significant shift in hearing and no evidence of permanent auditory damage during service.

The Veteran's claims for increased ratings for asbestosis with pleural thick thickness and bilateral hearing loss were denied. The Board found that the evidence did not meet the criteria for higher disability ratings under applicable rating schedules.

The Board has granted service connection for right ear hearing loss, finding that the Veteran's current condition is related to his military service. However, left ear hearing loss was not found to be present at a level meeting VA criteria for disability.

The Board has remanded the case due to inadequate medical opinions regarding the etiology of the Veteran's right ear hearing loss. The Veteran is seeking service connection for this condition, which he claims was caused by noise exposure during his military service.

The Veteran's service-connected disabilities, including bilateral upper and lower extremity peripheral neuropathy, have rendered him unable to secure or follow a substantially gainful occupation since March 19, 2021.

The Board has remanded the claims of service connection for cervical strain, neuropathy of the right lower extremity, and neuropathy of the left lower extremity due to inadequate opinions in the May 2021 VA examination. The Veteran's reports of injuries during service are considered credible.

The Veteran's death was not caused by or related to any service-connected conditions. The appellant is granted a nonservice-connected burial allowance but denied a plot or interment allowance due to the lack of evidence that the Veteran's cremains were interred.

The Veteran's bilateral hearing loss is granted, and the claim for an initial compensable rating for epiretinal membrane in his left eye is remanded.

The Board has granted service connection for bilateral hearing loss and tinnitus, but dismissed the appeal regarding unspecified restrictive lung disease as moot due to a prior grant of service connection.