Citation Nr: 18145032
Decision Date: 10/26/18	Archive Date: 10/25/18

DOCKET NO. 14-41 663
DATE:	October 26, 2018
REMANDED
Entitlement to a compensable rating for bilateral hearing loss is remanded.
REASONS FOR REMAND
The Veteran served on active duty in the Marine Corps from June 1966 to July 1969.
Entitlement to a compensable rating for bilateral hearing loss is remanded.
The Veteran contends that he is entitled to a higher rating for his service-connected bilateral hearing loss, which is currently rated as non-compensable.
The Veteran last received a VA audiology examination in October 2011, which is unduly remote, as it is seven years old.  A remand is necessary to afford the Veteran an opportunity to undergo an updated VA examination to assess the current severity of his hearing loss disability.  See Caffrey v. Brown, 6 Vet. App. 377, 381 (1994) (noting that an examination too remote for rating purposes cannot be considered “contemporaneous”); Snuffer v. Gober, 10 Vet. App. 400, 403 (1997).  On remand, the Veteran should also be offered the opportunity to submit any private treatment records in support of his claims.
Also, the results of a private audiogram conducted by CENTA Hearing Center in June 2013 were provided in graphic representations without interpretation as to the exact pure tone thresholds found at the appropriate frequencies.  Kelly v. Brown, 7 Vet. App. 471 (1995) (the Board should not discount audiograms just because they are in graphical form and can remand uninterpreted audiograms for interpretation).  The Board is unable to interpret the audiometric results regarding the severity of the Veteran’s bilateral hearing loss.  The Regional Office attempted to contact CENTA in September 2013, but no response was received.  On remand, a second attempt should be made.
The matter is REMANDED for the following action:
1. Obtain any outstanding VA and private medical treatment records for hearing loss.
2. Make a second attempt to contact CENTA Hearing Center, where the June 2013 private audiogram was conducted, for purposes of interpretation of the graphical audiogram.  The audiologist who conducted the examination should be asked to: (i) clarify whether the audiologist is a state-licensed audiologist; (ii) provide exact numbers in decibels for the pure tone thresholds for each ear at the appropriate frequencies (1000, 2000, 3000, and 4000 Hertz); (iii) clarify whether speech discrimination testing was conducted using the Maryland CNC test; and (iv) if the Maryland CNC test was used, identify the speech discrimination scores.
Any negative responses should be noted in the file.
3. Schedule the Veteran for an examination by a state-licensed audiologist to determine the current severity of his service-connected bilateral hearing loss.  The examiner should provide a full description of the disability and report all signs and symptoms necessary for evaluating the Veteran’s disability under the rating criteria. 
The examiner must report objective test results, to include Maryland CNC speech discrimination test and pure tone audiometry test, and fully describe the functional effects of the Veteran’s hearing loss disability on his occupational functioning, daily life, and ordinary activities.
 
JENNIFER HWA
Veterans Law Judge
Board of Veterans’ Appeals
ATTORNEY FOR THE BOARD	C. Casey, Associate Counsel