The Board has denied service connection for bilateral hearing loss, tinnitus, asthma, heart disease, peripheral vascular disease, lumbar spine disability with associated radiculopathy, right shoulder disability, bilateral ocular disability (claimed as an eye condition), chronic fatigue syndrome, sleep apnea, erectile dysfunction, and prostate disability.,The Veteran's service records do not show any complaints or diagnoses of these conditions during his military service. The VA audiology examination in March 2016 found normal hearing for both ears.
The deciding factor: There is no evidence of a current disability for the claimed conditions, and the medical opinions provided by VA did not establish a link between any of the conditions and the Veteran's military service.
- Claimed conditions
- Bilateral Hearing Loss, Tinnitus, Asthma, Heart Disease (including ischemic heart disease, sinus bradycardia and arrhythmia), Peripheral Vascular Disease, Lumbar Spine Disability with associated bilateral lower extremity radiculopathy (claimed as lumbar disc disease, lumbar radiculitis, and lumbar spinal stenosis), Right Shoulder Disability, Bilateral Ocular Disability (claimed as an eye condition), Chronic Fatigue Syndrome, Sleep Apnea, Erectile Dysfunction, Prostate Disability
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- August 14, 2019
- Citation
- 19163154
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 19163154.
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.
- Partly granted
The Board granted service connection for PTSD, generalized anxiety disorder, and somatic symptom disorder, as well as presumptive service connection for basal cell carcinoma under the PACT Act. Service connection was denied for chronic fatigue syndrome, irritable bowel syndrome, right restless leg syndrome, left restless leg syndrome, an increased rating for psychiatric disorder, bilateral hearing loss, a left forehead surgical scar, and allergic rhinitis.
- Partly granted
The Board denied a compensable rating for erectile dysfunction and a higher rating for left upper extremity peripheral neuropathy with muscle weakness, but granted an earlier effective date for the 60 percent disability rating for thrombosis, TIA or cerebral infarction with impairment of sphincter control and voiding dysfunction, and for service connection for pharynx and/or larynx and/or swallowing conditions residuals.
- Granted
The Board granted service connection for bilateral hearing loss and tinnitus, finding that the Veteran's conditions are related to in-service noise exposure.
- Partly granted
The Board granted a 70% rating for PTSD from November 25, 2015 to August 12, 2024 and a 40% rating for the right shoulder disability. It also granted 10% ratings for both feet and 20% ratings for knee patellofemoral pain syndromes.
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