Tinnitus (ringing in the ears) decisions — 2018

The Board denied the Veteran's claims for service connection for bilateral hearing loss and tinnitus, finding no evidence of a nexus between these conditions and his military service.

The Veteran's claim for service connection for hepatitis C has been reopened, and the claim is granted. The claims for service connection for tinnitus, migraine headaches, adjustment disorder with depressed mood, degenerative arthritis of the right knee, degenerative disc disease of the lumbar spine, left lower extremity radiculopathy, and right lower extremity radiculopathy are all denied.

The Veteran's tinnitus and anxiety disorder have been granted service connection. The Veteran's migraine headaches, bilateral hearing loss, and low back disability are remanded for further development.

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

The Board denied service connection for left eye disorder, tinnitus, hepatitis C, hypertension, and bilateral hearing loss as there was no competent medical evidence to support the Veteran's claims.,Service connection could not be established because there were no in-service incurrences or manifestations of these conditions.

The Board has granted service connection for tinnitus. The remaining issues of service connection for bilateral hearing loss, low back disability, right and left knee disabilities, and skin cancer are remanded due to the need for additional medical examinations.

The Veteran's claim for an earlier effective date for TDIU and DEA benefits was denied as the evidence did not show that he was unemployable prior to June 7, 2013.

The Board has determined that the Veteran's current bilateral hearing loss and tinnitus are related to his service, as there is at least equipoise evidence supporting this conclusion. Therefore, service connection for these conditions is granted.

The Veteran's claims for right ear hearing loss disability, left ear hearing loss disability, cervical spondylosis, tinnitus, tinea versicolor, adjustment disorder with mixed anxiety and depressed mood, right hip iliotibial band syndrome with limited flexion, right hip iliotibial band syndrome with limited extension, right hip iliotibial band syndrome with impairment of the thigh, right knee strain, left knee strain, thoracolumbar strain, right shoulder scars, status-post surgery, left ingrown toenails, and migraine headaches have all been denied.,The Veteran's bilateral pes planus claim has also been denied for periods when a 100% rating was granted due to surgical convalescence.

The Board has decided to remand the Veteran's claims for service connection for bilateral hearing loss and tinnitus due to incomplete records and unclear VA examination opinions. The case will be returned to the RO for further development.

Service connection for tinnitus is granted. An initial rating of 30 percent, but no higher, for service-connected other specified trauma and stress-related disorder is granted.

The Veteran's claims for service connection and increased ratings are remanded due to the need for further development. The hearing loss claim is denied as there is no evidence of a current disability, while tinnitus and insomnia have been assigned appropriate initial ratings.

The Board has granted the Veteran's appeals to reopen claims for service connection for bilateral hearing loss, tinnitus, a psychiatric disability (to include bipolar disorder and schizophrenia), and PTSD. The appeals for service connection for gout, myositis, various musculoskeletal disabilities, sleep apnea, heart disease, ED, neuropathies, and depression are remanded.

The Veteran's tinnitus is considered service-connected as it is related to his already established left ear hearing loss.

The Veteran's TDIU claim was denied as his service-connected disabilities do not prevent him from obtaining or maintaining substantially gainful employment.

The Board has granted the Veteran's claims for service connection for bilateral hearing loss and tinnitus, finding that these conditions are related to his in-service noise exposure.

The Board has granted service connection for bilateral hearing loss and tinnitus, finding that the Veteran's current conditions are at least as likely as not related to in-service noise exposure.

The Board has decided that the claims for service connection for tinnitus and sleep difficulty (claimed as secondary to tinnitus) need further development due to incomplete medical opinions.

The Board has granted service connection for bilateral tinnitus. The issue of service connection for bilateral pressure-induced otalgia and an acquired psychiatric disorder (including anxiety disorder and major depressive disorder) is remanded due to the need for additional development.

The Board has remanded several issues related to the Veteran's service connection claims due to new evidence received after May 2018. The SSOC will address these matters.