The Board has determined that the Veteran's claims for service connection are not properly characterized as separate claims and have been remanded to obtain a VA examination to determine if any current psychiatric disability is attributable to his time on active duty. The hearing loss and tinnitus issues also require additional development, including obtaining medical opinions regarding their etiology.
The deciding factor: The Veteran's mental health diagnoses may be associated with military service due to the presence of diagnosed disabilities and a history of psychiatric problems during service.
- Claimed conditions
- hearing loss, tinnitus, an acquired psychiatric disability
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- July 6, 2010
- Citation
- 1025026
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 1025026.
What this means for you
A remand is not a loss. The Board sent the case back for more development — often a new exam or missing records — before making a final decision. Many remands later end in a grant, and the decision spells out exactly what the Board wanted to see.
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 asthma and remanded claims for insomnia and sleep apnea. Other conditions were denied.
- Dismissed
The Veteran withdrew the appeals for service connection for bilateral pes planus, obstructive sleep apnea, bilateral hearing loss, tinnitus, and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD).
- Partly granted
The Board granted a 50 percent rating for posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) and denied increased ratings for right shoulder impingement syndrome, hearing loss, painful scar, patellofemoral pain syndromes of the knees, and other conditions.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board remands the claim for service connection for tinnitus to correct a duty to assist error, as the Veteran's lay statements regarding onset and continuity of symptoms were not adequately considered in the previous decision.
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