The Veteran's service-connected disabilities are sufficient to bring his combined disability rating to 90 percent, with at least one disability rated 40 percent or higher. The Board finds that the Veteran is unemployable due to his service-connected disabilities and grants TDIU.
The deciding factor: The Veteran has multiple service-connected impairments affecting his ability to secure or maintain substantially gainful employment, including hearing loss, tinnitus, PTSD-related anger issues, and bilateral upper and lower extremity neuropathy.
- Claimed conditions
- Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD), Diabetes Mellitus, Peripheral Neuropathy of the Bilateral Upper and Lower Extremities, Tinnitus, Bilateral Hearing Loss
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- 90%
- Decision date
- August 14, 2018
- Citation
- 18126164
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 18126164.
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.
- Denied
The Board denied service connection for bilateral hearing loss and tinnitus, finding that the Veteran's current conditions are not related to his military service.
- 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.
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