The Veteran's heart disability, including hypertensive heart disease, was not incurred or aggravated during service and is not presumed to have been incurred therein. Service connection for a left leg disability secondary to the heart disability is denied as there is no competent evidence linking such disability to service.,There is no medical evidence of a current bilateral hearing loss disability or any link between any incident of service, including claimed acoustic trauma, and the Veteran's current bilateral hearing loss.
The deciding factor: The preponderance of the evidence shows that the Veteran's heart murmur at enlistment was functional in nature and there is no medical evidence linking a current heart disability to service. The left leg disability and right leg paresis are not shown during service or for decades thereafter, nor is there any competent evidence linking these disabilities to service.,There is no medical evidence of a current bilateral hearing loss disability or any link between any incident of service, including claimed acoustic trauma, and the Veteran's current bilateral hearing loss.
- Claimed conditions
- Heart Disability, Left Leg Disability, Right Leg Paresis, Bilateral Hearing Loss, Tinnitus
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- May 6, 2009
- Citation
- 0916923
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 0916923.
What this means for you
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What you can do next
Related decisions
Other Board decisions on a similar condition or argued the same way.
- Denied
The Board denied service connection for bilateral hearing loss and tinnitus, finding that the Veteran's current conditions are not related to his military service.
- Granted
The Veteran's bilateral hearing loss is granted as service-connected. The claims for alcohol abuse and psychiatric disorder are remanded for additional development, including a VA examination to determine the nature and etiology of these conditions.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board has decided to remand the case due to a need for a new VA examination to assess the current severity of the Veteran's bilateral hearing loss. The issue remains under direct service connection theory.
- Denied
The Veteran's hearing loss was rated at 30 percent, the highest non-compensable rating available. The Board found that his hearing loss did not warrant a higher rating based on VA examinations and medical records.
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