The Veteran's claim for service connection for residuals of a right hand injury is granted as the evidence supports that he incurred such an injury during ACDUTRA or INACDUTRA and continues to have residual symptoms.,Service connection for bilateral hearing loss is denied because there is no current disability meeting VA criteria. The Veteran reported noise exposure in service, but his audiometric test results did not indicate a hearing loss disability at any time during service or within one year of separation.,The Veteran's claim for tinnitus is granted as he has provided credible testimony regarding the onset and persistence of symptoms during active duty.
The deciding factor: There is sufficient lay evidence to establish that the Veteran injured his right hand during a period of ACDUTRA or INACDUTRA, and this injury resulted in current posttraumatic arthritis. The VA examiner's opinion supports this finding.,The Veteran's audiometric test results did not meet the criteria for hearing loss disability under 38 C.F.R. § 3.385 at any time during service or within one year of separation, and there is no evidence indicating a current hearing loss disability.,The Veteran reported noise exposure in service, including live fire training exercises and exposure to loud noises. His testimony regarding the onset and persistence of tinnitus symptoms aligns with his military service history.
- Claimed conditions
- residuals of right hand injury, bilateral hearing loss, tinnitus
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- October 4, 2021
- Citation
- A21016310
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 A21016310.
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 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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