The Board denied service connection for chronic otitis externa, finding that the evidence does not support a causal relationship between the condition and the Veteran's active service.
The deciding factor: The January 2023 VA examiner's opinion was given significant weight due to its accuracy and supporting data, concluding that COE is less likely than not related to or aggravated by the service-connected bilateral tympanic membrane perforation.
- Claimed conditions
- chronic otitis externa
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- October 28, 2025
- Citation
- A25093164
Veterans Law Judge
Decisions by this judge: 2,451 · Granted: 22% (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 A25093164.
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 Veteran's service connection claims for various conditions were granted effective from July 1, 2020.
- Granted
The Veteran's chronic otitis externa has been rated at a 10 percent disability level, effective from the date of the decision.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board has remanded the Veteran's claims for additional VA examinations to assess the current severity of her service-connected disabilities. The issues remain on appeal as they have not been finally decided.
- Partly granted
The Board granted service connection for tinnitus, but remanded the claims for migraines, chronic otitis externa, and an acquired psychiatric disorder.
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