The Board denied service connection for hearing loss in either ear but granted service connection for bilateral flatfoot (pes planus) as proximately due to the Veteran's service-connected right ankle disability.
The deciding factor: The evidence was not persuasive that the Veteran's hearing loss is related to noise exposure in service, while there was at least an equal probability that his bilateral flatfoot developed from the biomechanical effects of his service-connected right ankle disability.
- Claimed conditions
- Bilateral flatfoot (pes planus), Hearing loss in either ear
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- December 1, 2025
- Citation
- A25102938
Veterans Law Judge
Decisions by this judge: 2,500 · Granted: 29% (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 A25102938.
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.
- Denied
The Board denied service connection for bilateral hearing loss and bilateral flatfoot (pes planus) as the evidence did not support a finding that these conditions began during active service or are otherwise related to an in-service injury, event, or disease.
- Denied
The Veteran's bilateral foot disabilities, including flatfoot and metatarsalgia, are rated at 30 percent from January 27, 2010 through July 25, 2013. The rating is denied for a higher rating.
- Granted
The Veteran's migraine headaches, bilateral hearing loss, and GERD are all service-connected. The pes planus is presumed to have been incurred in service based on the evidence of record. Cerumen impaction was also found to be incurred during service.
- Denied
The Board denied the veteran's claims for increased ratings for his service-connected lumbar myositis, psychoneurosis and conversion hysteria, residuals of shrapnel wounds of the left thigh and pelvis with retained foreign bodies and scars, and residuals of shell fragment wounds of the right thigh and left leg. The veteran was also denied entitlement to a total disability rating based on individual unemployability due to service-connected disabilities.
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