The Veteran's bilateral hearing loss and sleep apnea were not found to be related to service.,Service connection for a right ankle disability was denied, as there is no evidence of an in-service injury or current disability. The Veteran's left ankle disability was also denied as secondary to the right ankle disability.
The deciding factor: The Veteran does not have a current hearing loss disability and his service treatment records are negative for complaints or findings of any hearing loss disability.,There is no evidence showing that the Veteran had sleep apnea during service, and there is no medical opinion linking the current condition to service.
- Claimed conditions
- bilateral hearing loss, sleep apnea, right ankle disability, left ankle disability
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- September 7, 2018
- Citation
- 18132967
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 18132967.
What this means for you
A remand is not a loss. The Board sent the case back for more development — often a new exam or missing records — before making a final decision. Many remands later end in a grant, and the decision spells out exactly what the Board wanted to see.
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 expanded the scope of the claim to include any mental health disorder raised by the record and has remanded for additional development regarding service connection for left leg, ankle, and psychiatric disabilities.
- 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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