Tinnitus (ringing in the ears) decisions — 2017

The Board has granted the Veteran's claim for a total disability rating based on individual unemployability (TDIU) due to his service-connected disabilities. The issue of whether the appellant filed a timely notice of disagreement with regard to the effective date assigned for SMC remains pending and will be remanded.

The Board has determined that the Veteran's current bilateral hearing loss and tinnitus are related to in-service acoustic trauma, resolving reasonable doubt in his favor.

The Board has determined that the Veteran's tinnitus, low back disability, and bilateral hearing loss were incurred in service. The Veteran will now be granted service connection for these conditions.

The Board has determined that the Veteran's bilateral hearing loss and tinnitus are service-connected, with the latter being secondary to his service-connected hearing loss.

The Board has determined that the Veteran's tinnitus and lumbar spine disability are service-connected as they are related to in-service incidents.

The Board has granted service connection for bilateral hearing loss. The claim for service connection for bilateral tinnitus, to include as secondary to the now-service connected bilateral hearing loss, is remanded.

The Veteran's service-connected disabilities render him unable to secure or follow substantial gainful employment, and the Board finds that his claim for TDIU is warranted.

The Veteran's claims for service connection for bilateral hearing loss and tinnitus were denied in 1989. He filed a petition to reopen his claims on March 28, 2013, which was granted with an effective date of March 28, 2013. The claim for earlier effective dates is denied as there are no subsequent claims earlier than the March 28, 2013 petition to reopen.

The Veteran's claims for an initial compensable rating for bilateral hearing loss and a rating in excess of 10 percent for tinnitus have been denied. The Veteran currently receives noncompensable ratings for both conditions.

The Board has determined that the Veteran's bilateral hearing loss and tinnitus are related to his military service, with no other probable basis for these conditions. The claims are therefore granted.

The Board found that the Veteran's current tinnitus did not have its onset during service and was not shown to be related to an injury, disease, or event in service. As a result, the claim for service connection for tinnitus was denied.

The Veteran's service-connected disabilities are not of such severity as to preclude substantially gainful employment consistent with his education and occupational experience during the appeal period.

The Veteran's service-connected disabilities alone do not preclude him from securing and following a substantially gainful occupation consistent with his education and work experience.

The Veteran's service-connected disabilities, including right ankle disorder, tinnitus, bilateral hearing loss, left thumb fracture, inguinal hernia, right hip DJD, and surgical scar, have rendered him unable to secure or follow substantially gainful employment for the period from May 9, 2006 to March 13, 2011. The Board has granted a TDIU on an extraschedular basis during this timeframe.

The Board has determined that the evidence is at least in equipoise as to whether the Veteran's bilateral tinnitus is related to his military service, and therefore grants service connection for this condition.

The Veteran's appeal is being remanded for further development, including a VA examination to determine if he experienced TBI due to an in-service blast and whether his current hearing loss and tinnitus are related to that injury.

The Veteran's claims for service connection were denied, and his initial ratings for tinnitus and bilateral hearing loss were also denied. The Board found no legal basis for higher initial ratings.

The Veteran's TDIU claim is being remanded for further development, including a VA examination to assess the combined effects of his service-connected disabilities on his employability.

The Board has determined that the Veteran's post-operative residuals of right and left lower extremity cold injury, bilateral hearing loss disability, and tinnitus are all attributable to service. The partial amputations were due to diabetes mellitus rather than the in-service cold injuries.

The Board has granted service connection for bilateral hearing loss and tinnitus, finding that the Veteran's tinnitus is at least as likely as not a symptom of his service-connected bilateral hearing loss.