Service connection is granted for tinnitus and bilateral hearing loss, with the reasoning that current disability resulted from in-service noise exposure. Service connection is denied for TBI and headaches due to lack of a qualifying chronic disability or evidence linking symptoms to service.,Headaches are not considered a presumptive condition under VA regulations, and there is no direct evidence linking the Veteran's current headache symptoms to his military service.
The deciding factor: The preponderance of the evidence does not support a finding that the Veteran has a qualifying chronic disability for which service connection may be granted on a presumptive basis.
- Claimed conditions
- tinnitus, bilateral hearing loss, headaches
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- May 2, 2019
- Citation
- 19134359
Veterans Law Judge
Decisions by this judge: 1,421 · Granted: 31% (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 19134359.
What this means for you
A grant means the Board agreed the veteran was entitled to the benefit. Decisions like this show the kind of evidence and arguments that tend to succeed for claims like it.
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.
- Granted
The Board has determined that the Veteran's headaches are at least as likely as not caused by his service-connected traumatic brain injury, and thus grants service connection for this condition.
- 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.
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