The Board has determined that there is no evidence of a scarred right ear drum during the Veteran's active duty service. The Veteran's STRs do not reflect any clinical findings or treatment for a scarred right ear drum, and his STRs were reported as normal. There is also no credible evidence to support the Veteran's claim that he was informed by a medical examiner in March 1970 of having a scarred left ear drum.
The deciding factor: The Board found that there was no clinical evidence or contemporaneous documentation supporting the Veteran's claims for a scarred right and left ear drums during his active duty service, and thus denied both issues on appeal.
- Claimed conditions
- bilateral hearing loss, scarred ear drums
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- August 30, 2012
- Citation
- 1229923
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 1229923.
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.
- 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 bilateral hearing loss, migraine headaches, and PTSD due to additional development of records and examination.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board has decided to remand the case due to insufficient evidence regarding the Veteran's bilateral hearing loss claim, specifically needing an addendum opinion from a VA examiner. The Veteran will be asked to provide any missing records and former employers' information.
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