The Veteran's claim for higher ratings for bilateral hearing loss and lumbosacral strain, as well as service connection for sleep apnea, erectile dysfunction, and hypertension, was denied. The Board found the evidence did not support higher ratings or establish a nexus between these conditions and service.
The deciding factor: The medical evidence did not support higher disability ratings for bilateral hearing loss and lumbosacral strain, nor could it be established that any of the Veteran's service-connected disabilities caused or aggravated obesity, which is necessary to establish service connection for sleep apnea, erectile dysfunction, and hypertension.
- Claimed conditions
- bilateral hearing loss, lumbosacral strain, sleep apnea, erectile dysfunction, hypertension
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- February 21, 2024
- Citation
- 24008592
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 24008592.
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.
- 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.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board has remanded the claims for service connection for hypertension and peripheral neuropathy of the bilateral upper and lower extremities due to insufficient medical opinions regarding their etiology.
- Dismissed
The Veteran's claim for an earlier effective date for diabetes mellitus type II with erectile dysfunction was denied as the evidence did not show that he had been diagnosed and manifested to at least a 10 percent disability rating on or prior to May 8, 2001.
- 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.
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