Tinnitus (ringing in the ears) decisions — 2018

The Board has determined that new and material evidence has not been received to reopen the claims for service connection for bilateral hearing loss and tinnitus, thus denying these claims.

The Veteran's claim for service connection for tinnitus was initially denied in November 2014, but new and material evidence was received within the appeal period. The effective date of the award is set at February 25, 2014.

The Board has determined that the Veteran does not meet the criteria for service connection for left ear hearing loss, right ear hearing loss, tinnitus, or a shoulder disability.

The Board found that the Veteran did not experience a TBI event during service and does not have current residuals of a TBI. The Veteran is currently diagnosed with tinnitus, but it was not incurred in active service and may not be presumed to have been incurred in active service.

The Board denied the Veteran's request for an earlier effective date for his service connection for bilateral hearing loss and tinnitus, finding that the claim was received on May 25, 2010.

The Board denied service connection for all claimed conditions, including posttraumatic stress disorder, respiratory disability, eye disability, left-sided nerve disability, bilateral hearing loss, tinnitus, and bilateral foot disabilities. The decision was based on the appellant's National Guard service rather than active duty at Ground Zero.

The Board has reopened the Veteran's claims for service connection for bilateral hearing loss and tinnitus. The Board finds that there is an approximate balance of positive and negative evidence, with the private medical opinion establishing a link between the Veteran's hearing loss and in-service acoustic trauma, and the April 2012 VA examiner linking his tinnitus to his hearing loss. Therefore, service connection for bilateral hearing loss and tinnitus is granted.

The Veteran has been diagnosed with hypertension, bilateral sensorineural hearing loss, and tinnitus. The Board grants service connection for hypertension under the presumption of chronicity based on in-service exposure to acoustic trauma.

The Board has determined that the evidence is at least in relative equipoise as to whether the Veteran's tinnitus had its onset during active service, and thus grants service connection for tinnitus. The issue of bilateral hearing loss remains pending.

The Veteran's tinnitus is found to be related to noise exposure during active service and the Board grants service connection for this condition.

The Veteran's service-connected disabilities do not preclude him from securing or following a substantially gainful occupation.

The Veteran's service-connected disabilities have not prevented him from engaging in substantially gainful employment for which his education and occupational experience would otherwise qualify him.

The Board denied service connection for the claimed conditions, including GI disability, bilateral hearing loss, tinnitus, facial nerve paralysis, panic disorder, and coronary artery disease. The decision found that these disabilities were not related to service.

The case is REMANDED to the Agency of Original Jurisdiction (AOJ) for additional development and readjudication.

The Board has determined that new and material evidence has been received to reopen the claim of service connection for an acquired psychiatric disorder. However, the Veteran's current acquired psychiatric disability was not incurred in-service and is not related to his active service. The Veteran's bilateral hearing loss and tinnitus were also not incurred in-service, are not related to his active service, and did not manifest within one year after separation from active service.

The Board has granted service connection for bilateral hearing loss and tinnitus, finding that the Veteran's current conditions are related to his in-service noise exposure. Service connection was also granted for bruxism as secondary to PTSD, and for peripheral neuropathy of the BLE and BUE due to Agent Orange exposure.

The Board has determined that service connection is not warranted for bilateral hearing loss, tinnitus, or hypertension as these conditions are not related to the Veteran's military service.

The Veteran's tinnitus is related to his active military service and the Board has determined that it should be granted as service connected.

The Veteran's tinnitus is found to be related to his service, but he does not have a current bilateral hearing loss disability that meets VA criteria for a disability.

The Board found that the RO did not address or apply the standard of clear and unmistakable error in its severance of the Veteran's service connection for hearing loss and tinnitus, thus finding the severance improper.