The Veteran's claim for service connection for tinnitus has been denied as there is no evidence of a current disability and the Board finds that the Veteran did not have tinnitus during service or within one year thereafter.,The Veteran's claim for service connection for diabetes mellitus, type II, to include as due to herbicide exposure, has also been denied. The Board found that there was no evidence showing the Veteran served in Vietnam and thus could not establish presumptive service connection based on Agent Orange exposure.,The Veteran's claim for service connection for a heart disorder remains pending and is remanded for further examination.
The deciding factor: There is no current evidence of tinnitus, and the Board found that any potential link to service-connected otitis media was not established. The Veteran did not have diabetes during service or within one year after service.,The Veteran's exposure to herbicide agents in Vietnam has been denied due to lack of evidence showing he served there. Therefore, presumptive service connection based on Agent Orange exposure is not available for diabetes mellitus, type II.,The heart disorder claim remains pending as the Board found that the Veteran did not have a current disability and could not establish direct service connection.
- Claimed conditions
- tinnitus, diabetes mellitus, type II, heart disorder
- How they argued it
- Not specified
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- March 27, 2019
- Citation
- 19123332
Veterans Law Judge
Decisions by this judge: 439 · Granted: 19% (granted or partly granted, in the vetted decisions on this site)
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 19123332.
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.
- 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.
- Granted
The Veteran's tinnitus is granted as service connected. The issues of foot disability and cardiovascular disorder are remanded for additional development.
- Granted
The Board has granted service connection for tinnitus, finding that it is at least as likely as not that the Veteran experienced tinnitus during his active duty service.
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