The Board denied a compensable initial disability rating for left ear hearing loss and granted an initial 10 percent disability rating for left thumb tendonitis, while remanding claims for service connection for bilateral knee and right hip disabilities (secondary to service-connected conditions).
The deciding factor: The Veteran's left ear hearing loss did not meet the criteria for a compensable rating due to its level of impairment, whereas his left thumb tendonitis met the criteria for a 10 percent rating based on painful motion. The bilateral knee and right hip claims were remanded for further development.
- Claimed conditions
- left ear hearing loss, left thumb tendonitis, bilateral knee disability (secondary to service-connected bilateral ankle and lumbar spine disabilities), right hip disability (secondary to service-connected bilateral ankle and lumbar spine disabilities)
- How they argued it
- Secondary to another service-connected condition
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- 10%
- Decision date
- January 13, 2022
- Citation
- 22001844
What this means for you
A partial grant means some issues were granted while others were denied or remanded — common in multi-issue claims. Look at which issues went which way, and how each was argued.
What you can do next
Related decisions
Other Board decisions on a similar condition or argued the same way.
- Dismissed
The appeal for a compensable rating for left ear hearing loss, service connection for right ear hearing loss, and bilateral vision condition was dismissed. Service connection for hypertension, congestive heart failure, and coronary artery disease was denied.
- Partly granted
The Board granted a 20 percent disability rating for left and right lower extremity radiculopathy from April 3, 2023 onward, but denied higher ratings prior to that date. Service connection was also granted for alcohol use disorder as secondary to PTSD with traumatic brain injury.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board remands the claim for service connection of left ear hearing loss due to a pre-decisional duty to assist error, as an addendum opinion is necessary to address evidence of in-service hearing loss and convert audiometric testing results from ASA to ISO-ANSI standards.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board remands the claim for service connection for left ear hearing loss to obtain an adequate VA opinion addressing the hearing loss demonstrated on the September 1968 and July 1974 examination, under both ASA and ISO-ANSI standards.
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