Tinnitus (ringing in the ears) decisions — 2007

The Board has determined that the veteran's current right ear hearing loss, tinnitus, arthritis, and presbyopia are not service-connected.

The Board has determined that the veteran did not incur hearing loss and tinnitus in service, and thus denied both claims.

The Board has denied the veteran's claims for service connection for PTSD, a stomach disability (secondary to PTSD), a back disorder, headaches, a skin disability of the feet, bilateral hearing loss, and tinnitus. The issues have been remanded for further development.

The Board has determined that additional development is necessary in the current appeal, including obtaining medical records and conducting examinations to determine the nature and etiology of the appellant's hearing loss, tinnitus, and hypertension. The case will be remanded for these purposes.

The Board finds that the veteran's tinnitus began during or as a result of her active military service and grants service connection for this condition.

The veteran's service connection claims for bilateral hearing loss and tinnitus have been denied as there is no evidence of a chronic condition during service or an applicable presumptive period, and the post-service complaints are not related to his military noise exposure.

The Board denied the veteran's claims for service connection for bilateral hearing loss and tinnitus, finding that there was no evidence of current disabilities or a nexus to active service.

The veteran's claim for separate compensable ratings for tinnitus in each ear is denied as there is no legal basis to award such ratings.

The Board denied the veteran's claims for service connection for bilateral hearing loss and tinnitus, finding that there was no evidence to support a link between these conditions and his military service.

The Board has remanded the case for additional development, including obtaining records from a U.S. Public Health Service Hospital and arranging for a VA examination to determine if the veteran's current hearing loss, tinnitus, and postoperative right ear injury are related to his military service.

The Board has determined that the veteran's bilateral hearing loss is related to noise exposure during his military service, warranting service connection. However, there is no medical evidence linking the current tinnitus to his service.

The veteran's claims for service connection for various conditions were denied. The Board found that the claimed conditions are not related to active service and did not arise from an undiagnosed illness.

The Board has determined that the veteran's claimed conditions, bilateral hearing loss and tinnitus, were not incurred or aggravated by service. The residuals of a shell fragment wound to the left shin and cold injury to the hands, face, and feet are also denied as there is no evidence of such disabilities during service.

The veteran's appeal was dismissed because he died before a final decision could be made.

The Board has denied the reopening of claims for service connection for hypertension and tinnitus due to lack of new and material evidence.

The Board found that there is no evidence of hearing loss at the time of separation from service, and no evidence of continuity of symptomatology. The VA examinations did not find a nexus between current bilateral hearing loss or tinnitus and service.

The Board has granted service connection for bilateral hearing loss and tinnitus, finding that the veteran's current conditions are related to his in-service noise exposure. The heart condition and pulmonary condition (claimed as asbestosis) claims remain pending.

The Board has determined that the veteran's current hearing loss and tinnitus are causally related to his active service, including exposure to noise during combat operations in Korea. As such, the claims for service connection have been granted.

The Board denied the claims for tinnitus, bilateral hearing loss, and low back disorder. The claim for PTSD was reopened but ultimately denied on the merits due to lack of a nexus to service.

The veteran's service-connected disabilities do not meet the criteria for a temporary total evaluation or a TDIU rating due to his combined disability rating of 80 percent, which does not exceed the schedular threshold.