The Board found that there is insufficient evidence to establish service connection for the claimed conditions, including bilateral hearing loss, residuals of a left foot and/or ankle injury, hypertension, and peripheral neuropathy. The Veteran's claims were denied as his claims are not supported by competent medical evidence.
The deciding factor: The VA examinations did not provide reliable or valid audiometric data sufficient to adjudicate the claim for service connection for bilateral hearing loss. For the other conditions, there is no persuasive evidence of in-service incurrence or a nexus to service.
- Claimed conditions
- Bilateral Hearing Loss, Chronic Residuals of Left Foot and/or Ankle Injury (including Arthritis), Hypertension, Peripheral Neuropathy of Bilateral Lower Extremities
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- March 26, 2015
- Citation
- 1512998
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 1512998.
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.
- Granted
The Veteran's bilateral hearing loss is granted as service-connected. The claims for alcohol abuse and psychiatric disorder are remanded for additional development, including a VA examination to determine the nature and etiology of these conditions.
- Denied
The Board denied the claim of service connection for hypertension, finding that it did not manifest during service and is not causally related to the Veteran's exposure to herbicides or service.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board has decided to remand the case due to a need for a new VA examination to assess the current severity of the Veteran's bilateral hearing loss. The issue remains under direct service connection theory.
- Denied
The Board denied the Veteran's claim for service connection for hypertension, finding that there was no evidence of a nexus between his current condition and active duty service or herbicide exposure.
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