The Board found that the Veteran's hearing was normal at service separation and did not exhibit hearing loss within one year post-service. The June 2010 VA examination concluded that his current bilateral hearing loss is less likely than not related to military acoustic trauma, but rather due to non-military etiologies such as presbycusis and civilian noise exposure.
The deciding factor: The Board found the Veteran's claim for service connection for bilateral hearing loss denied based on lack of in-service complaints or findings of hearing loss, no post-service complaints until over a half-century after separation from service, and medical opinion concluding that current hearing loss is not related to military service.
- Claimed conditions
- bilateral hearing loss disability
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- September 14, 2010
- Citation
- 1034583
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 1034583.
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.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board has granted service connection for tinnitus but has remanded the issue of service connection for bilateral hearing loss disability due to inadequate examination and reasoning.
- Denied
The Board has denied the Veteran's claims for service connection for bilateral hearing loss disability and tinnitus, finding that there is no credible evidence linking these conditions to his active service.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board has remanded the Veteran's claims for bilateral hearing loss disability and tinnitus due to errors in providing notice of his right to a pre-decisional hearing.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board has granted service connection for tinnitus but has remanded the claim of service connection for bilateral hearing loss disability due to a pre-decisional duty to assist error.
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