The Veteran's service connection for bilateral hearing loss is denied as he does not have a current disability recognized by VA.,Service connection is granted for obstructive sleep apnea, which was aggravated by his service-connected adjustment disorder with mixed anxiety and depressed mood with polysubstance dependence (psychiatric disability).,Service connection is granted for migraine headaches, which are proximately due to his service-connected psychiatric disability.,The issue of service connection for tinnitus remains pending as a remand is required.
The deciding factor: The Veteran does not have bilateral hearing loss that meets the VA criteria for a disability.,Obstructive sleep apnea was aggravated by his service-connected adjustment disorder with mixed anxiety and depressed mood with polysubstance dependence (psychiatric disability).,Migraine headaches are proximately due to his service-connected psychiatric disability.,The Veteran's tinnitus needs further evaluation as the July 2014 VA examiner did not address a secondary basis for service connection.
- Claimed conditions
- bilateral hearing loss, obstructive sleep apnea, migraine headaches
- How they argued it
- Secondary to another service-connected condition
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- April 14, 2020
- Citation
- 20025378
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 20025378.
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.
- 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 bilateral hearing loss, migraine headaches, and PTSD due to additional development of records and examination.
- Denied
The Board denied the Veteran's claim for service connection for obstructive sleep apnea, finding that there is no competent evidence to support a finding that his current condition began in or as a result of service.
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