The Board granted service connection for bilateral hearing loss and tinnitus, finding that the Veteran was exposed to acoustic trauma during periods of ACDUTRA and INACDUTRA, which caused his current disabilities.
The deciding factor: The evidence showed a current disability of bilateral hearing loss and tinnitus, as well as in-service acoustic trauma. The Board resolved reasonable doubt in favor of the Veteran regarding the nexus between the in-service noise exposure and the current disabilities.
- Claimed conditions
- Bilateral sensorineural hearing loss, Tinnitus
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- January 26, 2024
- Citation
- 24004152
What this means for you
A grant means the Board agreed the veteran was entitled to the benefit. Decisions like this show the kind of evidence and arguments that tend to succeed for claims like it.
What you can do next
Related decisions
Other Board decisions on a similar condition or argued the same way.
- Granted
The Board granted service connection for bilateral hearing loss and tinnitus, finding that the Veteran's conditions are related to in-service noise exposure.
- Partly granted
The Board granted an effective date of May 17, 2019, for a 70 percent disability rating for PTSD but denied earlier effective dates for service connection for bilateral hearing loss and tinnitus.
- Partly granted
The Board granted readjudication of previously denied claims for service connection for PTSD and COPD, while remanding other issues including entitlement to service connection for an eye disorder, hypertension, tinnitus, a compensable rating for bilateral hearing loss, TDIU, and an initial rating for PTSD.
- Dismissed
The Board dismissed the Veteran's appeals for service connection for bilateral hearing loss disability and tinnitus due to a lack of jurisdiction.
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