The Board granted service connection for rhinitis and disability manifested by shortness of breath, but denied service connection for bilateral hearing loss disability and Vitamin D deficiency. The Board also granted an initial 20 percent rating for thoracolumbar spine strain.
The deciding factor: Service connection was granted on a presumptive basis due to exposure to fine particulate matter during the Persian Gulf War, and the criteria were met based on the evidence of record.
- Claimed conditions
- rhinitis (claimed as sinusitis), disability manifested by shortness of breath, bilateral hearing loss disability, Vitamin D deficiency
- How they argued it
- Presumptive (no nexus needed)
- Exposure basis
- Gulf War
- Rating assigned
- 20%
- Decision date
- October 22, 2025
- Citation
- A25091293
Veterans Law Judge
Decisions by this judge: 2,604 · Granted: 65% (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 A25091293.
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.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board has granted service connection for tinnitus but has remanded the issue of service connection for bilateral hearing loss disability due to inadequate examination and reasoning.
- Denied
The Board has denied the Veteran's claims for service connection for bilateral hearing loss disability and tinnitus, finding that there is no credible evidence linking these conditions to his active service.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board has remanded the Veteran's claims for bilateral hearing loss disability and tinnitus due to errors in providing notice of his right to a pre-decisional hearing.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board has granted service connection for tinnitus but has remanded the claim of service connection for bilateral hearing loss disability due to a pre-decisional duty to assist error.
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