The Board denied service connection for GERD, bilateral hearing loss, and tinnitus as they were not related to the Veteran's active duty or his service-connected PTSD. The Board also denied a higher rating for PTSD.
The deciding factor: The evidence did not show that the Veteran's GERD, bilateral hearing loss, or tinnitus was related to his active duty or his service-connected PTSD. For PTSD, the symptoms were not severe enough to warrant a 100% rating.
- Claimed conditions
- Gastroesophageal reflux disease (GERD), Bilateral hearing loss, Tinnitus
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- March 25, 2009
- Citation
- 0910996
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 matters for additional development, including obtaining private treatment records and conducting VA examinations.
- Granted
The Board granted service connection for bilateral hearing loss and tinnitus, finding that the Veteran's conditions are related to in-service noise exposure.
- 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.
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