The Veteran's service connection claim for bilateral hearing loss is denied as there is no evidence of a current disability and the Board finds that his hearing did not worsen during service.,Service connection for tinea cruris is denied because the Veteran does not have a current diagnosis of this condition, and the STRs do not show any treatment or complaints related to it.,The Veteran's service connection claim for bilateral foot tinea pedis is granted as there is evidence of a current disability (diagnosis in 1970) and the Board finds that his condition was incurred during active duty due to exposure to hot and humid environment.,Service connection for bilateral hand tremor is remanded because the VA examiner provided negative opinions without adequate rationale.
The deciding factor: The Veteran's STRs do not show any evidence of a current disability, and his hearing did not worsen during service. The Board finds that there is no nexus between his current hearing loss and active duty.,There is no evidence of tinea cruris in the Veteran's STRs or post-service medical records. The condition was noted only once in 1970, which does not meet the criteria for a current disability as defined by VA regulations.,The April 2024 VA examiner found that the Veteran's bilateral foot tinea pedis is less likely than not caused by TERA and more likely related to exposure to hot and humid environment during his active-duty deployment. The Board finds this opinion sufficient to grant service connection for the condition.,The April 2024 VA examiner provided negative opinions without adequate rationale, which are insufficient to decide the Veteran's claim.
- Claimed conditions
- Bilateral Hearing Loss, Tinea Cruris, Bilateral Foot Tinea Pedis, Bilateral Hand Tremor
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- October 30, 2024
- Citation
- 24032426
Veterans Law Judge
Decisions by this judge: 399 · Granted: 41% (granted or partly granted, in the vetted decisions on this site)
Judge attribution: 2025 complete; earlier years partial.
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 24032426.
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.
- 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 Veteran's hearing loss was rated at 30 percent, the highest non-compensable rating available. The Board found that his hearing loss did not warrant a higher rating based on VA examinations and medical records.
- Denied
The Board denied the Veteran's claim for service connection for bilateral hearing loss, finding that there was no evidence of a nexus between his current hearing loss and his active service. The Board noted that while he had complaints of earaches in service, these did not indicate a current disability.
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