The Board has granted service connection for bilateral hearing loss and tinnitus, finding that the Veteran's current conditions are related to his in-service noise exposure. Service connection was not established for a left ankle disorder due to lack of evidence showing its onset during active duty or being otherwise related to service.
The deciding factor: The VA examiner found no chronic ankle disability but diagnosed bilateral ankle joint osteoarthritis, which is considered a natural progression and not related to the Veteran's in-service injuries.
- Claimed conditions
- Bilateral Hearing Loss, Tinnitus, Left Ankle Disorder
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- June 29, 2015
- Citation
- 1527748
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 1527748.
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.
- Denied
The Board denied service connection for bilateral hearing loss and tinnitus, finding that the Veteran's current conditions are not related to his military service.
- 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.
- 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 Veteran's hearing loss was rated at 30 percent, the highest non-compensable rating available. The Board found that his hearing loss did not warrant a higher rating based on VA examinations and medical records.
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