The Veteran's service connection claims for low back pain, bilateral hearing loss, and tinnitus have been granted. The Board found new and material evidence to reopen these claims.,Service connection is established for bilateral sensorineural hearing loss (hearing loss) based on continuity of symptoms since service separation.
The deciding factor: The Veteran provided testimony at a July 2019 hearing, lay statements from former servicemembers and friends, and VA examination results. The evidence showed in-service acoustic trauma and continuous post-service hearing loss symptoms.,Service connection for bilateral sensorineural hearing loss (hearing loss) is established based on continuity of symptomatology since service separation.
- Claimed conditions
- low back disorder, bilateral sensorineural hearing loss (hearing loss), tinnitus
- How they argued it
- Presumptive (no nexus needed)
- Exposure basis
- Gulf War
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- October 23, 2019
- Citation
- 19180449
Veterans Law Judge
Decisions by this judge: 2,200 · Granted: 43% (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 19180449.
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.
- 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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