The Board has remanded the Veteran's claims for bilateral hearing loss, tinnitus, a bilateral foot disability, COPD, residuals of a broken nose, and residuals of partially missing left thumb due to lack of available service treatment records. The Veteran was exposed to noise during service but did not seek medical attention.
The deciding factor: The Board found that the Veteran's military records were lost in a fire and thus had a heightened duty to assist him in developing his claims, including obtaining medical opinions regarding the relationship between his current conditions and service exposure.
- Claimed conditions
- Bilateral hearing loss, Tinnitus, Bilateral foot disability, Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD), Residuals of a broken nose, Residuals of partially missing left thumb
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- October 28, 2021
- Citation
- 21065994
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. Read the original VA decision (opens in a new tab) using citation 21065994.
What this means for you
A remand sends an issue back for more development, often a new examination or missing records. It does not award the benefit or decide the final outcome. The original decision explains the additional work ordered.
What you can do next
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.
- Granted
The Veteran's claim for a low back disorder was reopened, and his claims for increased ratings of bilateral knee instability were granted. His hearing loss claim was denied.
- Denied
The Board denied the veteran's claims for a higher rating for PTSD and dismissed his appeals regarding increased ratings for tinnitus and a right hand disability due to lack of timely filing of Notice of Disagreement.
- Denied
The Board denied the claim of service connection for the cause of the Veteran's death, finding that there was no evidence linking his myocardial infarction and COPD to his military service.
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