The Board denied the veteran's claim for service connection for ear infections, finding that there was no current disability and no evidence of a nexus between the in-service ear infections and any current condition.
The deciding factor: The June 2021 VA examiner opined that the Veteran's reported history of middle ear infection post-service is unrelated to acute ear infections during service. The Board gave more weight to this opinion over the veteran's assertions due to its thorough review of the claims file and medical records.
- Claimed conditions
- ear infections
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- January 11, 2022
- Citation
- 22001339
Veterans Law Judge
Decisions by this judge: 2,170 · Granted: 38% (granted or partly granted, in the vetted decisions on this site)
Judge attribution: 2025 complete; earlier years partial.
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 22001339.
What this means for you
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What you can do next
Related decisions
Other Board decisions on a similar condition or argued the same way.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board has decided to remand the case due to insufficient evidence and a need for another VA examination. The Veteran's hearing acuity is being considered, along with his history of ear infections.
- Dismissed
The veteran's appeal for service connection and disability ratings was dismissed because the veteran withdrew the appeal.
- Partly granted
The veteran's claim for an earlier effective date for tinnitus was denied. Service connection was granted for ear infections, bilateral hearing loss, obstructive sleep apnea, migraine headaches, and hypertension. Claims for fatigue, body aches, joint pain were denied. Claims for left and right lower shin splints were remanded.
- Granted
The Veteran's service connection claim for sinusitis is granted due to exposure to burn pits during his Southwest Asia service. The claim for ear infections is denied as there is no evidence of current disability.
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