The Board has denied the Veteran's claims for service connection for bilateral hearing loss, tinnitus, an acquired psychiatric disorder (including a major neurocognitive disorder resulting from a TBI and depressive disorder), and hypertension. The Board found that these conditions are not related to service or secondary to a service-connected condition.
The deciding factor: The VA examiners determined the Veteran's conditions were not related to his military service, with the exception of bilateral hearing loss which was attributed to noise exposure during service. However, the examiner noted the onset of hearing loss occurred more than 40 years after discharge and there is no evidence of a significant hearing threshold shift in service records.
- Claimed conditions
- bilateral hearing loss, tinnitus, major neurocognitive disorder resulting from a traumatic brain injury (TBI), depressive disorder
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- May 23, 2018
- Citation
- 18105126
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 18105126.
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.
- 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 service connection for hearing loss, tinnitus, and an acquired psychiatric disorder due to incomplete medical records and need for further examination.
- Denied
The Board denied the Veteran's claims for service connection for tinnitus, arthritis, and memory loss. The decision found no evidence linking these conditions to his military service.
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