The Veteran's bilateral hearing loss was manifested by hearing acuity of no worse than Level I in the right ear and no worse than Level III in the left ear. The claim for a compensable evaluation for bilateral hearing loss is denied.,The Veteran should be provided with a VA examination to determine if he currently has a TBI, and whether his other claimed disabilities are secondary to it. His current headaches may also be related to service, including his claimed head injuries and exposure to cannon and howitzer fire.,A VA examiner should provide an opinion on the relationship between the Veteran's sleep apnea and PTSD.,The Veteran's detached retina is remanded for further evaluation as a secondary condition to TBI.,The Veteran's left middle trigger/locked finger, right middle trigger/locked finger, left ring trigger finger, and right ring trigger finger are all remanded for further evaluation as secondary conditions to TBI.,The Veteran's sleep apnea is remanded for further evaluation as a secondary condition to PTSD.
The deciding factor: The evidence does not support the claim of entitlement to a compensable evaluation for bilateral hearing loss. The Veteran's current hearing acuity levels do not meet the criteria for a compensable rating.,The Veteran should be provided with a VA examination to determine if he currently has a TBI, and whether his other claimed disabilities are secondary to it. His current headaches may also be related to service, including his claimed head injuries and exposure to cannon and howitzer fire.,A VA examiner should provide an opinion on the relationship between the Veteran's sleep apnea and PTSD. The medical articles submitted by the Veteran suggest a possible link between sleep apnea and PTSD.,The Veteran's detached retina is remanded for further evaluation as a secondary condition to TBI. This may be related to his head injuries during service.,The Veteran's left middle trigger/locked finger, right middle trigger/locked finger, left ring trigger finger, and right ring trigger finger are all remanded for further evaluation as secondary conditions to TBI. The examiner should consider the Veteran's reported symptoms and their relation to his in-service injuries.,The Veteran's sleep apnea is remanded for further evaluation as a secondary condition to PTSD. The medical articles submitted by the Veteran suggest a possible link between sleep apnea and PTSD.
- Claimed conditions
- bilateral hearing loss, TBI (Traumatic Brain Injury), headaches, detached retina, left middle trigger/locked finger, right middle trigger/locked finger, left ring trigger finger, right ring trigger finger, sleep apnea
- How they argued it
- Not specified
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- November 21, 2023
- Citation
- 23061924
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 23061924.
What this means for you
A remand is not a loss. The Board sent the case back for more development — often a new exam or missing records — before making a final decision. Many remands later end in a grant, and the decision spells out exactly what the Board wanted to see.
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.
- 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.
- 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 bilateral hearing loss, migraine headaches, and PTSD due to additional development of records and examination.
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