Vertigo & vestibular disorders decisions — 2005

The veteran's claims for increased disability rating, service connection for nervousness and chest pains/shortness of breath are being remanded to the RO for further review. The VA is instructed to consider all evidence received since the last Supplemental Statement of the Case (SSOC).

The VA determined that the veteran's Meniere's disease with vertigo is not caused by his service-connected sinusitis.

The Board finds that the preponderance of evidence is against the veteran's claim for service connection for Meniere's disease, as there is no in-service diagnosis or treatment related to this condition. The veteran was not diagnosed with Meniere's disease until many years after his separation from active duty.

The veteran's service connection for a somatoform disorder and entitlement to TDIU have been granted.

The Board has returned the case to the RO for further development due to incomplete procedural steps and the need to review all evidence on file.

The Board has remanded the veteran's claims for service connection due to incomplete evidence and needs further examination.

The Board has denied the veteran's claims for service connection for hepatitis C, depression (claimed as secondary to hepatitis C), and Meniere's disease (claimed as vertigo and an ear condition). The veteran did not meet the criteria for service connection in any of these cases.

The Board denied the veteran's claims for service connection for a seizure disorder and labyrinthine dysfunction/vertigo, finding that these conditions were not incurred or aggravated by active service and are not proximately due to or the result of his service-connected hearing loss disability.

The veteran's appeals for evaluations of hypertension, degenerative joint disease of the left hip, chronic lumbosacral strain, vertigo, and tinnitus were dismissed as he withdrew his appeal on these issues prior to a decision being made.

The Board has remanded the case due to incomplete information and needs to obtain additional evidence from Social Security Administration.

The Board denied the veteran's claims for service connection for arthritis of the cervical spine, disability of the knees, left elbow, and feet, a psychiatric disability including anxiety disorder and depression, and vertigo. The appeals were all denied as new and material evidence was not received to reopen any of these previously denied claims.

Service connection for residuals of a left knee injury was granted effective February 12, 1992. The veteran's claim to reopen his previously denied claim for service connection for vertigo was also granted.

The Board has determined that the veteran does not have current diagnoses of PTSD, bilateral hearing loss, tinnitus, vertigo, malaria, or residuals of intestinal parasites. The claims for these conditions are therefore denied.

The Board has determined that the veteran does not currently have bilateral hearing loss or vertigo, and thus cannot establish service connection for these conditions. The claim is denied.

The veteran's claim for a TDIU rating was granted effective July 10, 2001, the date he filed his increased rating claim for Meniere's syndrome.

The Board found no evidence of bilateral hearing loss during or since service, and denied the veteran's claim for service connection.

The Board found that the veteran's claimed conditions were not incurred or aggravated by service, and denied all claims.

The veteran's Meniere's syndrome is rated at a 100 percent, effective April 16, 2001.

The Board denied the veteran's claims for service connection for Meniere's disease and left ear and facial jaw infections, including dizziness, nausea, and fullness of the left ear, as there is no persuasive medical evidence linking these conditions to his military service.

The veteran's appeal is remanded due to incomplete medical records and the need for VA examinations to determine the etiology of his hearing loss, tinnitus, and vertigo.