The Board denied service connection for various conditions, including bilateral hearing loss, dyslipidemia, low back disorder, and several types of joint pain. The decision also noted that the Veteran's acquired psychiatric condition was not related to his military service.
The deciding factor: The evidence did not show a chronic or continuous symptomatology of any claimed conditions during service or within one year after separation, and there was no medical opinion linking these conditions to service.
- Claimed conditions
- bilateral hearing loss, dyslipidemia, low back disorder, degenerative joint disease (DJD) of the hips, degenerative joint disease (DJD) of the knees, degenerative joint disease (DJD) of the ankles, degenerative joint disease (DJD) of the feet, skeletal body pain, diabetes mellitus type II (DM II), diabetic neuropathy of the bilateral upper extremities (BUEs), diabetic neuropathy of the bilateral lower extremities (BLEs), hypertension (HTN), acquired psychiatric disorder
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- April 16, 2019
- Citation
- 19129688
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.
- Dismissed
The Veteran withdrew the appeals for service connection for bilateral pes planus, obstructive sleep apnea, bilateral hearing loss, tinnitus, and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD).
- Denied
The Board denied service connection for multiple conditions, including bilateral hearing loss and various musculoskeletal issues, as well as an initial rating in excess of 0 percent for rhinitis. However, the Board granted a 70 percent rating for posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD).
- Partly granted
The Veteran's tinnitus is granted, while fibromyalgia, internal or external hemorrhoids, bilateral hearing loss, and neuropathy are denied.
- Granted
The Board granted service connection for bilateral hearing loss, finding it at least as likely as not related to the Veteran's in-service noise exposure.
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