The Board denied service connection for bilateral hearing loss, tinnitus, hypertension, nasal congestion, and sinusitis as the evidence is not persuasive that these conditions are related to service.,Service records do not show any complaints or treatment for hearing loss, tinnitus, hypertension, nasal congestion, or sinusitis during active duty. The Veteran's current diagnoses were first noted after separation from service.
The deciding factor: The Board found no evidence of in-service noise exposure and no symptoms of the conditions at the time of separation from service. The VA examiner did not find a causal relationship between the current conditions and service, as they had normal hearing sensitivity at both entrance and exit from active duty.
- Claimed conditions
- Bilateral Hearing Loss, Tinnitus, Hypertension, Nasal Congestion, Sinusitis
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- March 11, 2026
- Citation
- A26022180
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 A26022180.
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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 tinnitus, finding that the Veteran's current conditions are not related to his military service.
- Granted
The Veteran's bilateral hearing loss is granted as service-connected. The claims for alcohol abuse and psychiatric disorder are remanded for additional development, including a VA examination to determine the nature and etiology of these conditions.
- Denied
The Board denied the claim of service connection for hypertension, finding that it did not manifest during service and is not causally related to the Veteran's exposure to herbicides or service.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board has decided to remand the case due to a need for a new VA examination to assess the current severity of the Veteran's bilateral hearing loss. The issue remains under direct service connection theory.
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