The Board has determined that the Veteran does not have a current diagnosis of osteoarthritis, chronic respiratory conditions, or bilateral hearing loss related to his military service. Therefore, these claims for service connection are denied.
The deciding factor: There is no competent medical evidence showing a current disability and no link between any diagnosed condition and the Veteran's military service.
- Claimed conditions
- Osteoarthritis of the left fourth finger, Chronic upper respiratory infections (URI), Bilateral sensorineural hearing loss
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- December 9, 2009
- Citation
- 0946631
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 0946631.
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.
- Dismissed
The appeal of the deferred decision regarding entitlement to compensation for headaches is dismissed. Service connection for sleep apnea and bilateral sensorineural hearing loss is granted.
- Granted
The Veteran's SMC was granted at the intermediate level between 38 U.S.C. § 1114(m) and (n) due to additional disabilities including peripheral neuropathies, tinnitus, hearing loss, and lymphoma.
- Denied
The Board denied an earlier effective date for the grant of service connection for bilateral sensorineural hearing loss, finding that the Veteran's most recent claim was filed on May 23, 2017.
- Granted
The Board granted a disability rating of 20 percent but no higher for the Veteran's bilateral sensorineural hearing loss.
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