The Board has denied service connection for tinnitus and bilateral hearing loss, finding no evidence of onset or continuity of symptoms since service. The Veteran's claim for service connection for bilateral pes planus is remanded due to insufficient medical opinion regarding the etiology.,Service connection was not granted for bilateral pes planus as there was no current diagnosis of flatfoot (pes planus) and the examiner could not determine if it had onset in service.
The deciding factor: The Board found that the Veteran did not have a current disability of tinnitus or bilateral hearing loss, and thus could not establish service connection. For pes planus, there was no diagnosis at all, and the opinion provided by the VA examiner was insufficient to determine if it had onset in service.
- Claimed conditions
- bilateral hearing loss, bilateral pes planus, tinnitus
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- March 25, 2019
- Citation
- 19121860
Veterans Law Judge
Judge attribution: 2025 complete; earlier years partial.
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 19121860.
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.
- 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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