The Board has determined that the Veteran's hypertension and bilateral hearing loss did not manifest in service, were not continuous since service, were not shown to a compensable degree within one year of separation from service, and are not etiologically related to his active service. The Veteran's chronic cough, pseudofolliculitis barbae, and tinea pedis/tinea cruris are also not caused by or otherwise etiologically related to his military service.
The deciding factor: The preponderance of the evidence does not support a finding that the Veteran's hypertension and hearing loss were incurred in service or due to any other service-connected disability. The VA examiners provided clear explanations for their opinions, which are based on the medical records and examination findings. The Veteran's service treatment records do not document symptoms of, diagnoses of, or treatment for these conditions.
- Claimed conditions
- hypertension, bilateral hearing loss, chronic cough, pseudofolliculitis barbae, tinea pedis/tinea cruris
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- February 20, 2018
- Citation
- 1810842
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 1810842.
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.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board has remanded the claims for service connection for hypertension and peripheral neuropathy of the bilateral upper and lower extremities due to insufficient medical opinions regarding their etiology.
- 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.
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