The Board has denied service connection for tinnitus, bilateral hearing loss, left ankle disability, and bilateral shoulder disabilities. The claims for headaches, tonsillitis, strep throat, periodontal disease (pyorrhea), and sleep apnea are being remanded.,Service connection is not granted for the Veteran's claimed conditions due to lack of evidence linking them to service or any other relevant factor.
The deciding factor: The Board found no evidence of current disabilities related to the Veteran's in-service noise exposure, and thus denied service connection for tinnitus. The hearing loss claim was also denied as there is no objective evidence meeting the criteria for a disability under VA regulations.,For headaches, tonsillitis, strep throat, periodontal disease (pyorrhea), and sleep apnea claims, the Board found insufficient evidence to establish current disabilities related to service or any other relevant factor. Therefore, these claims are being remanded for further evaluation.
- Claimed conditions
- tinnitus, bilateral hearing loss, left ankle disability, bilateral shoulder disabilities, headaches, tonsillitis, strep throat, periodontal disease (pyorrhea), sleep apnea
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- June 25, 2020
- Citation
- 20043174
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 20043174.
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.
- Granted
The Board has determined that the Veteran's headaches are at least as likely as not caused by his service-connected traumatic brain injury, and thus grants service connection for this condition.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board has expanded the scope of the claim to include any mental health disorder raised by the record and has remanded for additional development regarding service connection for left leg, ankle, and psychiatric disabilities.
- 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.
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