The Board has determined that new and material evidence has been received to reopen the Veteran's claims of service connection for bilateral hearing loss and tinnitus. Resolving reasonable doubt in his favor, the Veteran's bilateral hearing loss is found to be incurred during active military service due to noise exposure. Similarly, recurring tinnitus is also found to be related to his military service.
The deciding factor: The Veteran provided credible testimony regarding significant noise exposure during training exercises and combat operations, which led to a finding of in-service noise exposure despite the VA examiner's initial skepticism based on the Veteran's self-reported minimal noise exposure as a truck driver. The Board also considered the continuity of symptoms since service and current audiometric findings.
- Claimed conditions
- bilateral hearing loss, tinnitus
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- October 24, 2012
- Citation
- 1236837
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 1236837.
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.
- 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 service connection for hearing loss, tinnitus, and an acquired psychiatric disorder due to incomplete medical records and need for further examination.
- Denied
The Board denied the Veteran's claims for service connection for tinnitus, arthritis, and memory loss. The decision found no evidence linking these conditions to his military service.
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