Tinnitus (ringing in the ears) decisions — 2011

The Veteran's appeal is remanded to the RO for further development, including VA examinations and consideration of extraschedular ratings. Service connection claims are also remanded.

The Board has determined that the Veteran's bilateral hearing loss and tinnitus are related to his active military service, granting service connection for both conditions.

The Board has determined that the Veteran's hearing loss and tinnitus were not incurred or aggravated by his military service, and therefore denied both claims.

The Board has determined that the evidence supports a grant of service connection for tinnitus, finding it related to exposure to acoustic trauma during service.

The Board has determined that additional development is needed to address the appellant's claims for service connection, non-service-connected death pension benefits, and accrued benefits due to her spouse's death. Specifically, a medical opinion regarding whether the Veteran's service-connected right knee disability was a contributory cause of his death needs to be obtained.

The Board has determined that the Veteran's current tinnitus is related to exposure to acoustic trauma during service, and his hepatitis C is not related to active service. Therefore, both conditions are granted.

The Board has remanded the case due to insufficient evidence regarding the appellant's exposure to noise during military service and the relationship between his current hearing loss and tinnitus and such exposure. The appellant is asked to provide information about any audiometric testing conducted, and a VA examination will be scheduled to determine if he currently has hearing loss or tinnitus as a result of in-service noise exposure.

The Board has determined that the Veteran's tinnitus is likely due to noise exposure during his military service, and thus grants service connection for this condition.

The Veteran's service-connected bilateral hearing loss and tinnitus do not preclude him from securing and following substantially gainful employment, so his claim for a total disability rating based on individual unemployability due to service-connected disabilities is denied.

The Board has granted service connection for right ear hearing loss and tinnitus, finding that the Veteran's current disabilities are related to his in-service noise exposure without hearing protection.

The Board has remanded the case for further development, including scheduling a VA examination to evaluate the Veteran's claimed bilateral hearing loss and tinnitus.

The Veteran's claims for bilateral hearing loss, chronic tinnitus, a chronic skin disorder (claimed as eczema and/or chloracne), peripheral neuropathy, and Type II diabetes mellitus were all denied. The evidence did not show any in-service or post-service connection to these conditions.

The Veteran's claims for service connection for tinnitus and hearing loss were denied. The claim for hearing loss was not reopened due to lack of new and material evidence.

The Board found that the Veteran's pre-existing hearing loss and tinnitus were aggravated by his additional service in the Alabama Army National Guard, especially during 1988.

The VA determined that the Veteran's tinnitus is not related to his active duty service and denied his claim for service connection.

The Veteran's appeal is remanded due to inadequate examination for tinnitus and the need to obtain post-service treatment records from Warren AFB.

The Board finds that the Veteran's current tinnitus is related to exposure to acoustic trauma during his active service, and grants service connection for this condition. The issue of entitlement to service connection for bilateral hearing loss is addressed in the REMAND portion of the decision below.

The Board has determined that a new VA examination is necessary to determine the nature and etiology of any bilateral hearing loss and tinnitus, as well as whether these conditions are related to service. The appeal will be remanded for this purpose.

The Board finds that the Veteran does not have a current diagnosis of right ear hearing loss for purposes of establishing service connection. The Veteran's tinnitus originated during his military service and is presumed to have been incurred therein.

The Board has determined that new and material evidence has been received to reopen the claim for service connection for diabetes mellitus. However, the evidence does not relate to a disease or injury in service, thus the claim remains denied.