Tinnitus (ringing in the ears) Board decisions

The Veteran's tinnitus is found to be related to his service, and the Board grants service connection for this condition.

The Board has granted an effective date of February 8, 1996 for the award of service connection for tinnitus and denied an earlier effective date. The effective date of February 28, 2008 was properly assigned for the award of service connection for PTSD.

The Board has determined that the Veteran's current bilateral hearing loss is related to his active duty service, and thus grants service connection for this condition. However, there is insufficient evidence to support a finding of tinnitus being incurred in or aggravated by service.

The Board has determined that the Veteran's tinnitus is causally related to his military service and has granted his claim for service connection.

The Board has determined that the Veteran's claimed conditions, including bilateral hearing loss, tinnitus, and COPD, were not incurred in or aggravated by active military service.

The Board denied the Veteran's claim for an extraschedular evaluation for his service-connected bilateral tinnitus, finding no evidence of exceptional or unusual disability that would warrant such a rating.

The Board has determined that the Veteran's current tinnitus is related to noise exposure during service and grants service connection for tinnitus.

The Board has determined that the Veteran's tinnitus and vertigo are related to his active duty service, granting service connection for both conditions.

The Board found that the Veteran's current hearing loss and tinnitus are not related to his military service, as there is no evidence of a nexus between his in-service noise exposure and his current conditions. The Veteran's complaints of ringing in his ears during basic training were considered credible, but the absence of contemporaneous medical records and the lack of any probative medical evidence linking his hearing loss or tinnitus to service prevented the Board from granting service connection for these conditions.

The Board has determined that the Veteran's current hearing loss and tinnitus are not related to his military service, and therefore denied both claims for service connection.

The Board denied the Veteran's claims of entitlement to service connection for sensorineural hearing loss and tinnitus, finding that there was no evidence linking these conditions to his military service.

The Veteran's claims for bilateral hearing loss and tinnitus are being remanded due to the unavailability of his service treatment records. The Board will arrange for a VA examination to determine if these conditions are related to his military service, particularly his reported noise exposure.

The Board has determined that additional development is needed to determine if the appellant's hearing loss and tinnitus are related to his military service. The case is REMANDED for further action.

The Veteran's claim for an earlier effective date for a 10 percent disability rating for service-connected tinnitus is denied. The effective date is set at September 7, 2006.

The Board has determined that the Veteran's bilateral hearing loss and tinnitus are not service-connected, as there is no competent evidence linking these conditions to his military service.

The Veteran likely has bilateral hearing loss and tinnitus that are attributable to his active military service.

The Board has determined that the Veteran's current bilateral hearing loss and tinnitus are related to in-service noise exposure, granting service connection for these conditions.

The Board has determined that the Veteran's tinnitus is not related to his service and denied his claim for service connection.

The Board has determined that new and material evidence has not been submitted to reopen the claims for service connection for the cause of the Veteran's death and DIC benefits under 38 U.S.C. § 1318.

The Board has determined that the evidence submitted by the Veteran does not meet the criteria for reopening his previously denied claim of service connection for tinnitus.