The Board has determined that the veteran's tinnitus is due to service, and therefore grants service connection for bilateral tinnitus. The left ear hearing loss claim is denied as it was not incurred in or aggravated by service.
The deciding factor: The evidence shows that the veteran's tinnitus was likely present prior to service but became noticeable during service, while his left ear hearing loss increased due to natural progression of a pre-existing condition.
- Claimed conditions
- Hearing Loss (left ear), Tinnitus (bilateral)
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- July 24, 2006
- Citation
- 0621869
Veterans Law Judge
Decisions by this judge: 2,421 · Granted: 29% (granted or partly granted, in the vetted decisions on this site)
Judge attribution: 2025 complete; earlier years partial.
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 0621869.
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
Related decisions
Other Board decisions on a similar condition or argued the same way.
- Granted
The Veteran's service-connected disabilities, including traumatic brain injury and related conditions, have resulted in a TDIU effective February 16, 2023.
- Denied
The Board denied service connection for hearing loss in both ears and tinnitus, finding that the Veteran does not have current hearing loss disabilities as defined by VA regulations.
- Denied
The Board denied the Veteran's claim for a TDIU on an extraschedular basis, finding that his service-connected disabilities did not render him unable to secure or follow substantially gainful employment. The Board also denied DIC benefits under 38 U.S.C. § 1318.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board has decided to remand the Veteran's claims for hearing loss, tinnitus, right knee condition, and Pseudofolliculitis Barbae (PFB) due to insufficient evidence. The case must be returned to VA so that they can obtain additional medical records and ensure all relevant personnel records are available.
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