The Veteran's claims for service connection for bilateral hearing loss, tinnitus, and low back disability have been denied as there is no current evidence of a hearing loss disability or tinnitus within the appeal period. The Board found that the June 2017 VA examination results did not show bilateral hearing loss for VA compensation purposes.,The Veteran's claim for service connection for tinnitus was also denied, with the Board finding that his reported tinnitus is at least as likely as not a symptom of his hearing loss and noting that there is no convincing evidence of significant acoustic trauma during active duty or periods of ACDUTRA/INACDUTRA.,The Veteran's claim for service connection for low back disability was denied, with the Board finding that the most probative evidence does not establish an etiological link between his current low back disability and a period of active duty service.
The deciding factor: There is no current evidence of a hearing loss disability or tinnitus within the appeal period. The Veteran's reported tinnitus was found to be at least as likely as not related to his hearing loss, and there is no convincing evidence of significant acoustic trauma during active duty or periods of ACDUTRA/INACDUTRA.
- Claimed conditions
- bilateral hearing loss, tinnitus, low back disability
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- May 13, 2020
- Citation
- 20033427
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 20033427.
What this means for you
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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 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.
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