The Board denied the Veteran's claims for service connection for bilateral hearing loss, tinnitus, sexual dysfunction (secondary to diabetes mellitus), and hypertension (secondary to diabetes mellitus) due to a lack of medical evidence linking these conditions to his active duty service.
The deciding factor: There was no in-service noise exposure documented, and post-service medical records did not show any complaints or diagnoses related to tinnitus until many years after separation from service. The Veteran's sexual dysfunction and hypertension were not found to be directly related to his service-connected diabetes mellitus.
- Claimed conditions
- bilateral hearing loss, tinnitus, sexual dysfunction, hypertension
- How they argued it
- Presumptive (no nexus needed)
- Exposure basis
- Burn pits / airborne hazards
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- February 18, 2011
- Citation
- 1106816
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 1106816.
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 Veteran's appeal for service connection of bilateral hearing loss and a ruptured right ear drum was dismissed due to the death of the Veteran.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board has remanded the claims for service connection for hypertension and peripheral neuropathy of the bilateral upper and lower extremities due to insufficient medical opinions regarding their etiology.
- Denied
The Board found that the Veteran's bilateral hearing loss was noted upon entry into active duty service and did not increase in severity during service. Therefore, it denied his claim for service connection.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board has remanded the claims for service connection for hearing loss, tinnitus, and an acquired psychiatric disorder due to incomplete medical records and need for further examination.
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