The Veteran's bilateral hearing loss is currently rated as noncompensable, with a finding of Level I in both ears.,The Veteran’s gout, right ankle, is currently rated at 10 percent. The Board has remanded the case for further examination and opinion regarding the frequency and duration of incapacitating exacerbations.,The Veteran's vertebral artery aneurysm is also remanded for a VA examination to determine if it is related to service.
The deciding factor: The preponderance of evidence does not support a compensable rating for bilateral hearing loss as the Veteran’s audiometric test results do not meet the criteria for any higher level of impairment.,The Veteran's gout, right ankle, has remained stable with occasional flare-ups that are currently managed by medication and diet. The frequency and duration of these flare-ups need to be clarified through further examination.,The nature and etiology of the Veteran’s vertebral artery aneurysm must be determined as it is unclear whether it is related to service.
- Claimed conditions
- Bilateral Hearing Loss, Gout, Right Ankle, Vertebral Artery Aneurysm
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- December 17, 2019
- Citation
- 19194565
Veterans Law Judge
Decisions by this judge: 352 · Granted: 37% (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 19194565.
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.
- Granted
The Veteran's bilateral hearing loss is granted as service-connected. The claims for alcohol abuse and psychiatric disorder are remanded for additional development, including a VA examination to determine the nature and etiology of these conditions.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board has decided to remand the case due to a need for a new VA examination to assess the current severity of the Veteran's bilateral hearing loss. The issue remains under direct service connection theory.
- Denied
The Veteran's hearing loss was rated at 30 percent, the highest non-compensable rating available. The Board found that his hearing loss did not warrant a higher rating based on VA examinations and medical records.
- Denied
The Board denied the Veteran's claim for service connection for bilateral hearing loss, finding that there was no evidence of a nexus between his current hearing loss and his active service. The Board noted that while he had complaints of earaches in service, these did not indicate a current disability.
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