The Board granted service connection for tinnitus and denied service connection for bilateral hearing loss. The remaining issues related to the right ankle, lumbar spine, cervical spine, and pes planus were remanded.
The deciding factor: The evidence did not support a current diagnosis of hearing loss disability as defined by 38 C.F.R. § 3.385, while tinnitus was found to have onset during active duty service with subsequent manifestations during the appeal period.
- Claimed conditions
- Bilateral hearing loss, Tinnitus, Right ankle lateral collateral ligament sprain, Lumbar strain with bilateral radiculopathy, Cervical spine degenerative arthritis, Bilateral pes planus
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- May 16, 2025
- Citation
- A25044158
What this means for you
A partial grant means some issues were granted while others were denied or remanded — common in multi-issue claims. Look at which issues went which way, and how each was argued.
What you can do next
Related decisions
Other Board decisions on a similar condition or argued the same way.
- Granted
The Board granted earlier effective dates of November 5, 2021, for the grants of service connection and eligibility for DEA benefits.
- Denied
The Board denied the veteran's claim for service connection for bilateral hearing loss, as there was no evidence of a current disability in the right ear and insufficient evidence to establish a nexus between the left ear hearing loss and service.
- 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.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board remands the matter for a medical clarification regarding whether the Veteran's service-connected epilepsy has aggravated his bilateral hearing loss.
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