The Board has determined that the veteran's claims for bilateral hearing impairment, bilateral ruptured ear drums, residuals of a closed head injury, and slurred speech are not well grounded. The veteran does not have current hearing loss by VA standards, his right eardrum was perforated during service but there is no evidence of left eardrum perforation during service, the residuals of a closed head injury claim lacks competent medical evidence linking the condition to service, and the slurred speech claim fails due to lack of etiological evidence. As such, these claims are denied.
The deciding factor: The veteran's hearing impairment does not meet VA disability standards, his right eardrum perforation during service is supported by medical records, but there is no evidence of left eardrum perforation during service. The residuals of a closed head injury claim lacks competent medical evidence linking the condition to service. The slurred speech claim fails due to lack of etiological evidence.
- Claimed conditions
- bilateral hearing impairment, bilateral ruptured ear drums, residuals of a closed head injury, slurred speech
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- June 5, 2000
- Citation
- 0014655
This is a plain-language summary generated by AI from a public Board of Veterans’ Appeals decision. It can contain errors — always verify against the original. Look up the original decision on VA.gov (opens in a new tab) using citation 0014655.
What this means for you
A grant means the Board agreed the veteran was entitled to the benefit. Decisions like this show the kind of evidence and arguments that tend to succeed for claims like it.
What you can do next
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