Tinnitus (ringing in the ears) decisions — 2018

The Board has decided to remand the Veteran's claims of service connection for bilateral hearing loss and tinnitus due to inadequate medical opinions. The Veteran contends that his current hearing loss and tinnitus are related to in-service acoustic trauma, but the VA examiner found no evidence supporting this claim.

The Board denied the Veteran's claims for initial ratings higher than 10 percent for tinnitus, left elbow strain, and right wrist strain. The maximum schedular rating of 10 percent was assigned for each condition.

The Veteran withdrew his appeal for tinnitus and dermatophytosis of the bilateral feet before a decision was made, resulting in their dismissal.

The Veteran's appeal seeking to establish that he filed a timely notice of disagreement (NOD) with the November 2007 rating decision was denied. The Board also remanded several issues for further development and consideration.

The Veteran's service-connected disabilities, including posttraumatic stress disorder, chronic venous stasis vascular disease in both legs, and ankle sores due to undiagnosed illness, have resulted in an inability to dress or undress himself, keep himself clean and presentable, feed himself without assistance, attend to the wants of nature on a regular basis, and protect himself from daily hazards. The Veteran needs aid and attendance for these reasons.

The Veteran's service-connected disabilities did not preclude him from securing or following substantially gainful employment prior to February 20, 2013.

The Veteran's bilateral hearing loss was restored to a 20 percent rating, effective November 21, 2014.,A higher rating for bilateral hearing loss is denied.,PTSD was granted an initial rating of 100 percent from December 26, 2017, and the Veteran's TDIU claim prior to October 7, 2014, remains pending.,The issue of a total disability due to individual unemployability based on service-connected disabilities (TDIU) was remanded.

The Veteran's death prevented the appellant from receiving accrued benefits for tinnitus and PTSD, as she remarried after turning 57 years old.

The Board has remanded the claims of service connection for bilateral hearing loss, tinnitus, migraine headaches, left fourth cranial nerve dysfunction with diplopia, and bilateral pes planus with hallux valgus, right foot, and residuals of bunionectomy due to additional evidentiary development being required.

The Veteran's claims for an effective date earlier than February 5, 2014 for the award of service connection for bilateral hearing loss and tinnitus are denied as the September 2003 rating decision is considered final.

The Board denied service connection for left ear hearing loss, right ear hearing loss, and tinnitus as the evidence did not support a finding that these conditions were incurred or aggravated by active service.

The Board has decided to remand the claims of service connection for bilateral hearing loss and tinnitus due to insufficient evidence from a previous VA examination. The Veteran will need to undergo another examination to determine if he has these conditions and whether they are related to his military service.

The Board has remanded the claims of bilateral hearing loss and tinnitus due to insufficient evidence regarding their onset during service.

The Veteran's tinnitus is presumed to have been incurred in service due to noise exposure during his military service.

The Board denied service connection for bilateral hearing loss, tinnitus, and sleep apnea as they were not incurred or related to service.,Service connection was also denied for a heart disability (including ischemic heart disease, congestive heart failure, and supraventricular tachycardia) because the Veteran did not have a diagnosis of ischemic heart disease.

The Veteran's claim for an earlier effective date of TDIU prior to February 5, 2010 was denied as the evidence did not show that he was unemployable due solely to his service-connected disabilities before this date.

The Veteran is granted a total disability rating for compensation purposes based on unemployability due to service-connected disabilities, with the effective date being August 30, 2001.

The Veteran's claim of service connection for tinnitus is granted. The claim of service connection for bilateral hearing loss is remanded.

Service connection is granted for tinnitus. The claim of reopening service connection for herpes is granted.

The Veteran's service connection claims for bilateral hearing loss and tinnitus have been granted as the evidence supports that these conditions are related to his in-service noise exposure.