The Veteran's hearing loss in the right ear was noted upon entry into service and remained unchanged at separation. Hearing loss in the left ear is not shown to have been incurred or aggravated by service, nor presumed due to exposure to Agent Orange or other environmental factors.
The deciding factor: The pre-existing hearing loss in the right ear was not aggravated by service, as audiometric results were substantially unchanged from entry into service. The Veteran's hearing loss in the left ear is not shown to have been incurred during service and no presumption of service connection applies due to a lack of continuity of symptomatology within one year after separation.
- Claimed conditions
- Hearing loss in the right ear, Hearing loss in the left ear, Degenerative changes in the vertebral body endplates with evidence of a disc bulge at the L5-S1 disc (chronic back disorder), Small disc protrusions to the C3-C4 and C4-C5 discs (chronic neck disorder)
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating
- Not verified here — check the original decision
- Decision date
- December 24, 2009
- Citation
- 0948465
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. Search VA.gov for the original decision (opens in a new tab) using citation 0948465.
What this means for you
A final Board denial may be appealed to the U.S. Court of Appeals for Veterans Claims, generally within 120 days of the Board mailing date. A Supplemental Claim with new and relevant evidence is a separate option. Another Higher-Level Review of the Board decision is not available. Check your own notice: this historical decision does not set your deadline.
What you can do next
Use your own notice and decision stage. A remanded issue is not a final court-appealable denial. VA review guidance and CAVC filing instructions (U.S. federal; reviewed October 7, 2026).
Related decisions
Other Board decisions on a similar condition or argued the same way.
- Whole decision: Denied
The Board denied the Veteran's claim for service connection for hearing loss in the left ear as there is no evidence of a current disability meeting VA criteria.
- Whole decision: Denied
The Veteran's left ear hearing loss is rated as Level I, which corresponds to a noncompensable rating. The Board denied the claim for an initial compensable rating.
- Whole decision: Remanded (sent back)
The Board has decided that the Veteran does not have a current disability of hearing loss in the left ear for VA purposes, and thus denied service connection. For the right ear, the Board found that there is no evidence to support a finding that the Veteran's hearing loss was incurred during service.
- Whole decision: Remanded (sent back)
The Veteran's service-connected disabilities, including PTSD, migraine headaches, tinnitus, hearing loss, and erectile dysfunction, precluded him from obtaining or maintaining a substantially gainful occupation prior to January 8, 2022. The Board has granted a TDIU effective from January 8, 2022 onward.
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