Tinnitus (ringing in the ears) decisions — 2016

The Veteran's tinnitus is found to have had its onset during service, and the Board grants service connection for this condition.

The Board has determined that the evidence is at least in equipoise as to whether the Veteran's bilateral hearing loss and tinnitus are related to his service, including noise exposure during active duty. Service connection for these conditions is granted.

The Board has determined that additional development is needed to substantiate the Veteran's claims for service connection, including obtaining STRs and corroborating his account of events during active duty.

The Veteran's claims for service connection have been denied. The Board finds that the evidence does not support a finding of current hearing loss or eye condition disabilities, and there is no direct service connection established.

The Veteran's claims for service connection for bilateral hearing loss and tinnitus have been granted. The claim for chronic bronchitis has not yet been decided.

The Board has determined that the Veteran's current bilateral hearing loss and tinnitus are not related to his military service, as there is no evidence of hearing loss or symptoms thereof during service. The claim for service connection for these conditions is therefore denied.

The Board denied the Veteran's claims for service connection for various conditions, including bilateral ankle and wrist disorders, lumbar spine disorder, tinnitus, and somnambulism. The decision found that there was no evidence of chronic or compensable disabilities during service or within one year post-service.

The Veteran's PTSD has been granted a 70 percent rating, and he is found to be unable to engage in substantially gainful employment due to his service-connected PTSD.

The Board has granted service connection for bilateral hearing loss and tinnitus, finding that the Veteran's current diagnoses are related to in-service noise exposure. Service connection for a kidney condition is also granted based on herbicide exposure during service.

The Veteran's PTSD has been rated at 70 percent, but the Board finds that there is not such an approximate balance of the positive evidence and negative evidence to permit a more favorable determination. The Veteran's TDIU claim was denied as his service-connected disabilities do not preclude him from substantially gainful employment.

The Board has determined that the Veteran's tinnitus is related to his in-service noise exposure and grants service connection for this condition.

The Board denied service connection for bilateral hearing loss and tinnitus, finding that the Veteran's current conditions were not caused by in-service noise exposure.

The Veteran's claims for bilateral hearing loss and tinnitus are being remanded due to inadequate VCAA notice, lack of a VA examination, and other procedural issues.

The Board has remanded the Veteran's claims of entitlement to service connection for tinnitus and a sleep disorder due to deficiencies in previous examinations. The case is now pending for further development.

The Board has determined that the Veteran's bilateral hearing loss and tinnitus do not meet the criteria for an extraschedular rating, as their combined effects are adequately captured by the current schedular evaluations.

The Board has ordered additional development to verify the appellant's exact dates of service and obtain VA treatment records. The appeal will be remanded for these actions.

The Board has found that the Veteran's tinnitus is service-connected. The hearing loss and eye disorder claims are remanded for further development.

The Veteran's claim for service connection for hearing loss was denied, as he does not have a disabling hearing loss. The Board granted service connection for tinnitus.

The Veteran's service-connected disabilities, including prostate cancer with impotence status post prostatectomy and rectal radiation burns with nerve trauma and fecal incontinence associated with prostate cancer with impotence status post prostatectomy, have resulted in a combined schedular evaluation of 90 percent. The Board finds that the preponderance of the evidence shows that these disabilities prevent the Veteran from securing or following substantially gainful employment.

The Board found that the Veteran's kidney disease was not incurred in or aggravated by active military service and denied this claim. For his tinnitus, the Board granted service connection as it is due to noise exposure during military service.