Tinnitus (ringing in the ears) decisions — 2008

The Board denied the veteran's claim for service connection for tinnitus, finding no evidence of a nexus between his active military service and his current diagnosis.

The Board has remanded the case due to a failure to ensure compliance with the terms of the April 2003 remand order. The appellant's claim for service connection for the cause of her husband's death is being reviewed by VA medical experts.

The Board has remanded the case for further development, including obtaining a medical opinion on whether all service-connected disabilities combine to render the veteran unemployable. The claim will also be submitted to the Director of Compensation and Pension Service for extraschedular consideration based on a private physician's December 2007 opinion.

The Board has determined that the veteran's bilateral hearing loss and tinnitus were not incurred in or aggravated by service, as there is no evidence of a current disability during service or any increase in severity during service. The preponderance of the evidence does not support a finding that the veteran's hearing loss and tinnitus are related to his military service.

The Board denied the veteran's claims for earlier effective dates for tinnitus and PTSD, finding that the earliest date of entitlement was November 21, 1988 for tinnitus and December 30, 1992 for PTSD.,The veteran argued that his conditions began during service or prior to the assigned effective dates. The Board found no legal authority to grant earlier effective dates based on these arguments.

The Board denied service connection for hepatitis C, PTSD, and tinnitus due to a lack of evidence linking these conditions to the veteran's military service.

The Board denied the veteran's claims for increased disability ratings and service connection, finding no current residuals of a cold injury to his feet and that his DM is currently controlled with medication without requiring regulation of activities or hospitalizations.

The Board has determined that additional development is necessary to determine if the veteran's bilateral hearing loss and tinnitus are related to his military service. The case is REMANDED for further action.

The Board has determined that the veteran's bilateral hearing loss is related to his military service, while tinnitus was not incurred in or aggravated by such service.

The Board has remanded the case due to the need for additional development, including obtaining SSA records and private treatment records.

The Board has denied the veteran's claims for service connection for left ear hearing loss, tinnitus, arthritis of the right knee and back, and a heart condition. The evidence does not support a finding that these conditions are related to active service.

The Board found that the veteran's current tinnitus did not develop as a result of any incident during service, to include exposure to noise. The claim for post-traumatic stress disorder was denied due to lack of evidence linking it to service.

The Board has denied the veteran's claims for service connection for coronary artery disease, Type II diabetes mellitus, and chronic tinnitus. The veteran requested withdrawal of his claim for service connection for Type II diabetes mellitus at a hearing before the Board.

The Board has determined that the veteran does not have a current hearing loss disability or tinnitus, and there is no evidence linking these conditions to service. Therefore, the claims for service connection are denied.

The Board found that the veteran's tinnitus was not incurred in or aggravated by service and denied his claim for service connection.

The Board has granted service connection for tinnitus, finding that the veteran's current condition is related to his active duty service.

The Board has determined that the veteran's current hearing loss and tinnitus did not have onset during service or within one year of separation, and are not etiologically related to his active service. The evaluation for PTSD remains at 30 percent.

The Board has determined that the veteran's bilateral hearing loss, tinnitus, lumbar spine disability, and cervical spine disability are all related to his military service.

The Board denied service connection for sinusitis and chronic right ear infections with dizziness and tinnitus, finding that these conditions did not begin during or as a result of active service. The claim for compensation under 38 U.S.C.A. § 1151 was also denied due to lack of evidence showing the veteran's current disabilities were proximately caused by VA treatment.

The Board has dismissed the appeals for service connection of the residuals of an injury to the left index finger, hearing loss disability, tinnitus, sinusitis, and headaches as the veteran withdrew these issues. The claim for bilateral eye disability (glaucoma) was denied due to lack of evidence of pre-service glaucoma at entry into active military duty.