The Veteran's claims for service connection for PTSD, hearing loss and ruptured eardrums were denied. The claim for diabetes mellitus was not decided as it is unclear if the exposure basis related to herbicide agents.
The deciding factor: There is no evidence of a current disability or a link between any in-service events and the claimed conditions.
- Claimed conditions
- Acquired Psychiatric Disorder (to include Posttraumatic Stress Disorder), Left Ear Hearing Loss, Ruptured Eardrums, Diabetes Mellitus, Type II
- How they argued it
- Secondary to another service-connected condition
- Exposure basis
- Gulf War
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- May 29, 2009
- Citation
- 0920170
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 0920170.
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 the Veteran's claims of service connection for right ear hearing loss and a compensable rating for left ear hearing loss, finding that there was no evidence to support these claims based on in-service noise exposure or other theories.
- Granted
The Veteran's service-connected PTSD alone is sufficient to grant a TDIU, and his other service-connected disabilities are at least 60% combined. The Veteran also meets the criteria for SMC based on housebound status.
- Granted
The Veteran was granted a TDIU with a September 19, 2024 effective date based on his PTSD, emphysema, and COPD symptoms. His diabetes, tinnitus, and left ear hearing loss were not found to prevent him from securing or following a substantially gainful occupation prior to March 19, 2024.
- Denied
The Veteran's service-connected disabilities did not prevent him from securing or following a substantially gainful occupation prior to August 31, 2020.
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