The Board has reopened the Veteran's claims of entitlement to service connection for bilateral hearing loss and tinnitus. After reviewing all evidence, including VA and private medical records, the Board finds that there is sufficient evidence to establish a link between the Veteran's current hearing loss and his military service. The Veteran served in an active duty role as a medical specialist and legal clerk, which may have exposed him to noise during his time in the Army. However, the evidence does not show any specific incidents of acoustic trauma or treatment for hearing issues during service. As such, the Board concludes that the Veteran's current bilateral hearing loss is related to his military service.
The deciding factor: The medical evidence shows a history of hearing impairment dating back to active duty service and establishes a link between the Veteran's current condition and his military service.
- Claimed conditions
- Bilateral Hearing Loss, Tinnitus
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- 0%
- Decision date
- February 16, 2010
- Citation
- 1005610
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 1005610.
What this means for you
A grant means the Board agreed the veteran was entitled to the benefit. Decisions like this show the kind of evidence and arguments that tend to succeed for claims like it.
What you can do next
Related decisions
Other Board decisions on a similar condition or argued the same way.
- Partly granted
The Board granted service connection for depressive disorder as secondary to hypertension and tinnitus, but denied service connection for bilateral hearing loss and an increased rating for hypertension.
- Partly granted
The Board granted service connection for bilateral hearing loss and tinnitus, but remanded the claim for degenerative disc disease with degenerative arthritis.
- Partly granted
The Board granted readjudication of previously denied claims for service connection for PTSD and COPD, while remanding other issues including entitlement to service connection for an eye disorder, hypertension, tinnitus, a compensable rating for bilateral hearing loss, TDIU, and an initial rating for PTSD.
- 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.
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