The Veteran's appeal for an increased evaluation for tinnitus has been denied as there is no legal basis to award a higher rating.,The Veteran's appeals for increased evaluations of his right shoulder impingement, lumbosacral strain, and right knee patellofemoral syndrome have all been remanded due to inadequate VA examinations.,The Veteran's appeal for a compensable evaluation for bilateral hearing loss has also been remanded as the VA examination was found invalid.
The deciding factor: There is no legal basis upon which to award separate schedular evaluations for tinnitus in each ear, given that under Diagnostic Code 6260 there is no provision for assignment of a separate 10 percent evaluation for tinnitus of each ear.,The VA examinations were inadequate as they did not address functional loss during flare-ups and following repetitive use. The Veteran was requested to be examined again in these conditions.,The VA examination for bilateral hearing loss was found invalid due to the inconsistency between speech recognition test (SRT) scores and pure tone averages (PTA).
- Claimed conditions
- tinnitus, right shoulder impingement, lumbosacral strain, right knee patellofemoral syndrome, bilateral hearing loss
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- July 25, 2019
- Citation
- 19157249
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 19157249.
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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