The Veteran's low back disability, neck muscle spasms, and radiculopathy of the hips are all found to be related to his service-connected conditions. His bilateral hearing loss is also found to be related to noise exposure in service.,The right shoulder condition is not found to be caused or aggravated by his service-connected cervical spine disability.
The deciding factor: All findings were based on the Veteran's credible statements and medical evidence linking his current conditions to his active service, including motor vehicle accidents and acoustic noise exposure.
- Claimed conditions
- Low Back Disability, Muscle Group XXIII (Neck Muscle Spasms), Radiculopathy of the Hips, Bilateral Hearing Loss, Right Shoulder Disability
- How they argued it
- Not specified
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- February 18, 2016
- Citation
- 1606219
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 1606219.
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.
- 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.
- Denied
The Board denied the Veteran's claim for service connection for bilateral hearing loss, finding that there was no evidence of a nexus between his current hearing loss and his active service. The Board noted that while he had complaints of earaches in service, these did not indicate a current disability.
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