Tinnitus (ringing in the ears) Board decisions

The Board has determined that the veteran's bilateral hearing loss and tinnitus are service-connected due to exposure to acoustic trauma during his military service.

The Board has determined that further development is needed to determine the relationship between the veteran's claimed conditions and his active military service, including verifying in-service stressful events for PTSD.

The Board found no clear and unmistakable error in the December 1996 rating decision that assigned a noncompensable evaluation for tinnitus, as the evidence did not support a compensable evaluation based on persistent tinnitus.

The Board finds that the veteran's tinnitus was incurred in service and continues to exist, warranting service connection.

The veteran's appeal has been withdrawn before the Board could make a decision.

The Board granted a 100 percent schedular evaluation for PTSD effective April 10, 2001.

The Board has denied the veteran's claims for service connection for bilateral hearing loss and tinnitus, as well as his attempts to reopen claims for secondary service connection for right shoulder and low back disorders. The evidence submitted since previous decisions was not considered new and material.

The Board denied the veteran's claim for an earlier effective date of July 8, 1999, for a 10 percent evaluation based on multiple, noncompensable service-connected disabilities under 38 C.F.R. § 3.324.

The veteran's claim for service connection for a left hip disability has been reopened and is granted.,Service connection for tinnitus is granted as the evidence supports that it was incurred during active duty due to noise exposure.

The Board has granted service connection for tinnitus and bilateral hearing loss, both with noncompensable evaluations effective May 8, 1998. The claim for a compensable evaluation for tinnitus prior to July 10, 1999 is denied, as the evidence shows constant tinnitus on and after that date. The claim for an evaluation in excess of 10 percent for tinnitus on and after July 10, 1999 is also denied. The claim for a compensable evaluation for bilateral hearing loss remains pending.

The Board denied the veteran's claims for initial compensable evaluations for bilateral hearing loss and a rating in excess of 10 percent for tinnitus, finding that his hearing impairment did not warrant such evaluations based on the available evidence.

The Board denied the veteran's claims for service connection for various conditions, including bilateral hearing loss, bilateral tinnitus, residuals of frostbite, a back condition, and a left knee condition. The veteran's stomach condition was not found to be proximately due to or aggravated by his service-connected PTSD. The claim for an increased rating for post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) is denied.

The Board has reopened the claim of PTSD and determined that new evidence supports a diagnosis, leading to service connection for PTSD. Bilateral hearing loss and tinnitus are also found to be related to military service.

The Board has granted service connection for bilateral hearing loss and tinnitus, finding that the veteran's current conditions are related to his military service. Service connection for degenerative joint disease of the feet is addressed in a separate remand.

The Board has determined that new and material evidence has been submitted to reopen the veteran's claim for service connection for bilateral hearing loss. The veteran is now entitled to this benefit based on his reported noise exposure during service.

The Board has denied the appellant's claim for service connection for bilateral hearing loss. The U.S. Court of Appeals for Veterans Claims (CAVC) has remanded the case, noting that additional records are needed and that the VA failed to adequately advise the appellant about his claim.

The Board found that the veteran's current bilateral hearing loss and tinnitus are most likely due to in-service acoustic trauma, resulting in a grant of service connection for these conditions.

The Board has granted service connection for PTSD and assigned a 50 percent evaluation, but the appellant seeks an increased rating. The claim is addressed in the Remand section.

The veteran's bilateral hearing loss and tinnitus were granted service connection effective June 14, 1996. The Board found that the evidence did not support higher ratings for either condition.

The veteran's claim for a compensable evaluation prior to December 1, 1996 for bilateral tinnitus was denied as the effective date of the change in VA regulations allowing for a compensable evaluation for tinnitus due to acoustic trauma is one year after the filing of his current application.