The Board denied the veteran's claims for service connection for bilateral hearing loss, schizophrenia (previously evaluated as a personality disorder), bilateral tinnitus, low back disability, left ankle disability, chronic kidney failure, hypertension, and diabetes mellitus, Type II, finding no evidence of in-service incurrence or aggravation and no medical nexus to service.
The deciding factor: The November 2004 VA examination provided negative opinions regarding the etiology of the veteran's claimed conditions, concluding that there was no evidence of in-service incurrence or aggravation and no medical nexus to service for any of the claimed conditions.
- Claimed conditions
- Bilateral hearing loss, Schizophrenia (previously evaluated as a personality disorder), Bilateral tinnitus, Low back disability, Left ankle disability, Chronic kidney failure, Hypertension, Diabetes mellitus, Type II
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- April 17, 2008
- Citation
- 0812730
What this means for you
A denial is a starting point, not the end of the road. You can see why this claim fell short — and, if you are still inside the one-year window, the appeal lanes that may remain open to you.
What you can do next
Related decisions
Other Board decisions on a similar condition or argued the same way.
- Denied
The Board denied the veteran's claim for service connection for bilateral hearing loss, as there was no evidence of a current disability in the right ear and insufficient evidence to establish a nexus between the left ear hearing loss and service.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board remands the claims for service connection for diabetes mellitus type II and hypertension, to include as secondary to left orchiectomy, for further development in accordance with the PACT Act.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board remands the matter for a medical clarification regarding whether the Veteran's service-connected epilepsy has aggravated his bilateral hearing loss.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board remands the claim for service connection for bilateral hearing loss to obtain an addendum opinion addressing the Veteran's lay statements regarding in-service acoustic trauma and a rocket blast injury.
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