The Board denied the Veteran's claim for service connection for hearing loss, finding that there is no medical nexus between active service and the current disability. The preponderance of evidence does not support a finding that the Veteran’s hearing loss was manifested during service or within one year after discharge.
The deciding factor: The VA examiner found that the Veteran's entrance and exit exams were normal, and that he subsequently spent 40 years working in a factory with required hearing protection. The examiner also noted there had been no permanent positive threshold shift in either ear at relevant frequencies from service entrance to service separation.
- Claimed conditions
- Hearing loss
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- October 29, 2018
- Citation
- 18145534
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 18145534.
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.
- Denied
The Board denied service connection for hearing loss, a left elbow disability (claimed as osteoarthritis), and a higher rating for lumbosacral strain.
- Denied
The Board denied the Veteran's claim for an initial increased rating for hearing loss, finding that the evidence did not support a compensable rating.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board remands the claims for service connection for hearing loss, psychiatric disorder, neck disorder, and radiculopathy of both upper and lower extremities to correct duty-to-assist errors.
- Denied
The Board denied service connection for hearing loss and remanded the issue of entitlement to service connection for a chronic ear infection.
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