The Veteran's bilateral hearing loss is related to his in-service exposure to noise, and he currently has a disability that meets the criteria for service connection. The Board also finds that there is at least an equal likelihood that the Veteran's left eye disability is related to his period of service, including hospitalization for an adverse reaction to penicillin with eye involvement.
The deciding factor: The VA examiner found it less likely than not that the current left eye disorder was related to the in-service finger poke. However, given the Veteran's history of hospitalization and eye involvement during this time, there is at least a 50% likelihood that his current left eye disability may be related to service.
- Claimed conditions
- bilateral hearing loss, left eye disability
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- March 21, 2016
- Citation
- 1611195
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 1611195.
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 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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