The Board denied various claims for increased ratings and earlier effective dates, as well as service connection for bilateral hearing loss.
The deciding factor: The evidence of record did not support the Veteran's claims for higher ratings or earlier effective dates, nor was there sufficient evidence to establish service connection for bilateral hearing loss.
- Claimed conditions
- traumatic brain injury (TBI), residuals tibial plateau fracture, right knee, sciatic radiculopathy, left lower extremity, scar, status post lumbar surgery, status post degenerative disc disease, lumbar spine with IVDS, seborrheic dermatitis, tinea pedis and autoeczematization reaction, allergic rhinitis, residual scar, left long finger, migraine headaches, irritable bowel syndrome (IBS), gastroesophageal reflux disease (GERD) with irritable bowel syndrome (IBS), bilateral hearing loss
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- April 15, 2025
- Citation
- A25034418
What this means for you
A denial is a starting point, not the end of the road. You can see why this claim fell short — and, if you are still inside the one-year window, the appeal lanes that may remain open to you.
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 left knee strain, right knee strain, right wrist strain, and TBI. The Veteran's PTSD rating was remanded for further development.
- Granted
The Veteran's migraine headaches were granted a 50 percent disability rating, effective August 8, 2023, due to very frequent completely prostrating and prolonged attacks that are productive of severe economic inadaptability.
- Denied
The Board denied increased ratings for the Veteran's lumbar spine pain, allergic rhinitis, and recurrent yeast infections. The claims for service connection for generalized anxiety disorder with alcohol use disorder and left knee pain were remanded.
- Granted
The Board granted a 50 percent rating for the Veteran's migraine headaches based on prostrating attacks occurring more than once a month and severe economic inadaptability.
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