The Veteran's claim for service connection for vestibular dysfunction as secondary to his service-connected migraines is granted. The claims for initial compensable evaluation and increased evaluations for bilateral hearing loss are denied.
The deciding factor: The VA examiner did not provide an opinion on whether the Veteran's vestibular dysfunction was directly related to service, but a private neurologist opined that it was likely caused by his service-connected migraines. This places the evidence in equipoise, and the benefit of doubt is applied in favor of the Veteran.
- Claimed conditions
- vestibular dysfunction, bilateral hearing loss
- How they argued it
- Not specified
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- 0%
- Decision date
- February 7, 2018
- Citation
- 1807836
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 1807836.
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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