The Veteran's claims for bilateral hearing loss disability, tinnitus, bilateral knee disorder, foot fungus disorder, hypertension (claimed as high blood pressure), and low back disorder have all been denied. The Board found no evidence of these conditions during service or within one year post-service.,There is no current evidence linking any of the Veteran's claimed disabilities to his active duty service.
The deciding factor: The Veteran did not report hearing loss or tinnitus symptoms in service, and there was no objective medical evidence of a hearing loss disability during service. The VA examiner concluded that the Veteran’s tinnitus is due to presbycusis (normal aging).,Service treatment records showed normal knees upon separation, and arthritis was not noted within one year post-service. There were no manifestations of knee disorders or arthritis in service.,The Veteran did not report foot fungus symptoms during service, and there are no objective medical findings linking the condition to his active duty service. The Board found that the remote onset of the disorder is unrelated to service.,Hypertension was not noted upon separation, nor were any manifestations of hypertension within one year post-service. There is no evidence linking the Veteran's current hypertension to his active duty service.,The Veteran did not report low back symptoms during service, and there are no objective medical findings linking arthritis (a chronic disease) to his active duty service.
- Claimed conditions
- Bilateral Hearing Loss Disability, Tinnitus, Bilateral Knee Disorder, Foot Fungus Disorder, Hypertension (claimed as High Blood Pressure), Low Back Disorder
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- January 6, 2020
- Citation
- 20000731
Veterans Law Judge
Decisions by this judge: 2,480 · Granted: 26% (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 20000731.
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Related decisions
Other Board decisions on a similar condition or argued the same way.
- Denied
The Board denied service connection for bilateral hearing loss and tinnitus, finding that the Veteran's current conditions are not related to his military service.
- Denied
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- Denied
The Board has denied the Veteran's claims for service connection for various conditions, including GAD, MDD, bruxism, migraines/headaches, tinnitus, hip pain, iliotibial band syndrome, and leg stress fractures. The evidence does not support current diagnoses of these conditions during the appeal period.
- Granted
The Veteran's service-connected disabilities, including bilateral pes planus with hammer toes, hallux valgus and degenerative arthritis, sleep apnea, bilateral hearing loss, tinnitus, and bilateral kidney cysts, rendered him unable to secure or follow gainful employment. The Board granted the TDIU based on these conditions.
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