The Board has denied the Veteran's claims for service connection for right ear and left ear hearing loss, finding that there is no evidence of a current disability during or within one year after service. The Board also found that the Veteran did not have a threshold shift in his left ear during service, which was used to determine if any hearing loss shown at separation from service was due to noise exposure.
The deciding factor: The VA examiner's opinion established that the presence or lack of a threshold shift on audiograms conducted throughout service is objective evidence used to determine if any hearing loss shown during or at separation from service was caused by his acknowledged noise exposure. The Veteran's current left ear hearing impairment was not related to military noise exposure.
- Claimed conditions
- Right ear hearing loss, Left ear hearing loss
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- March 24, 2026
- Citation
- A26026131
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 A26026131.
What this means for you
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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 remanded the claims for further development due to insufficient evidence and need for additional examinations.
- Dismissed
The appeal for service connection for a right ear hearing loss disability is dismissed. The appeal for service connection for bilateral knee disabilities is denied.
- Denied
The Board has determined that the Veteran's left ear hearing loss disability does not meet or approximate criteria for a compensable (10%) disability rating at any point during the appeal period.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board has remanded the Veteran's claims for a compensable rating for right ear hearing loss and service connection for left ear hearing loss due to inadequate audiometric examinations. The Veteran will be scheduled for new VA examinations to determine the nature and etiology of his left ear hearing loss and the severity of his hearing loss.
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