The Veteran's claims for bilateral hearing loss, right foot disability, left foot disability, and erectile dysfunction have been denied. The claim for hypertension is being remanded for further development.,For the issues of entitlement to service connection for a right foot disability, left foot disability, and erectile dysfunction, as well as hypertension, the Board finds that additional evidence or examination may be needed to determine if these conditions are related to active duty service.
The deciding factor: The Veteran's claims have been denied because there is no persuasive evidence of a current disability meeting VA criteria for hearing loss and no medical opinion linking any diagnosed disabilities to active duty service.,For the issues of entitlement to service connection for right foot, left foot, and erectile dysfunction, as well as hypertension, additional development is needed due to insufficient evidence regarding their etiology.
- Claimed conditions
- Bilateral Hearing Loss, Right Foot Disability, Left Foot Disability, Erectile Dysfunction, Hypertension, Bilateral Eye Condition (Secondary to Hypertension), Headaches (Secondary to Hypertension)
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- December 12, 2023
- Citation
- 23065656
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 23065656.
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.
- Granted
The Veteran's bilateral hearing loss is granted as service-connected. The claims for alcohol abuse and psychiatric disorder are remanded for additional development, including a VA examination to determine the nature and etiology of these conditions.
- Denied
The Board denied the claim of service connection for hypertension, finding that it did not manifest during service and is not causally related to the Veteran's exposure to herbicides or service.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board has decided to remand the case due to a need for a new VA examination to assess the current severity of the Veteran's bilateral hearing loss. The issue remains under direct service connection theory.
- Denied
The Board denied the Veteran's claim for service connection for hypertension, finding that there was no evidence of a nexus between his current condition and active duty service or herbicide exposure.
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