Citation Nr: 18148151 Decision Date: 11/06/18 Archive Date: 11/06/18 DOCKET NO. 14-36 955 DATE: November 6, 2018 ORDER Entitlement to service connection for bilateral hearing loss is denied. Entitlement to service connection for tinnitus is granted. REMANDED Entitlement to service connection for a right knee condition is remanded. Entitlement to service connection for a left knee condition is remanded. FINDINGS OF FACT 1. The preponderance of the evidence of record is against finding that the Veteran has, or has had at any time during the appeal, a current diagnosis of bilateral hearing loss, for VA purposes. 2. Resolving reasonable doubt in the Veteran’s favor, his tinnitus began during active service. CONCLUSIONS OF LAW 1. The criteria for service connection for bilateral hearing loss are not met. 38 U.S.C. §§ 1110, 1111, 5107(b); 38 C.F.R. §§ 3.102, 3.303(a), 3.385. 2. The criteria for service connection for tinnitus are not met. 38 U.S.C. §§ 1110, 1111, 5107(b); 38 C.F.R. §§ 3.102, 3.303(a). REASONS AND BASES FOR FINDINGS AND CONCLUSIONS The Veteran served on active duty from January 2007 to August 2007 and from September 2007 to September 2008. Service Connection The Veteran claims entitlement to service connection for hearing loss and tinnitus. 1. Entitlement to service connection for bilateral hearing loss Service connection will be granted if the evidence demonstrates that a current disability resulted from an injury or disease incurred in or aggravated by active service, even if the disability was initially diagnosed after service. 38 U.S.C. §§ 1110, 1131; 38 C.F.R. § 3.303. For the purposes of applying the laws administered by VA, impaired hearing will be considered to be a disability when the auditory threshold in any of the frequencies 500, 1000, 2000, 3000, 4000 Hz is 40 dB or greater; when the auditory thresholds for at least three of the frequencies 500, 1000, 2000, 3000, or 4000 Hz are 26 dB or greater; or when speech recognition scores using the Maryland CNC Test are less than 94 percent. 38 C.F.R. § 3. 385. The Board finds that the most pertinent evidence relating to this appeal consists of the Veteran’s statements, his service treatment records (STRs), VA treatment records, and the report from an October 2012 VA examination. The Veteran contends that he has hearing loss as a result of his exposure to loud noises, including those generated by missiles, rockets, and diesel trucks, during his active military service. See Transcript of Hearing Before Board of Veterans’ Appeals (Board) dated in June 2018. While the Veteran is competent to report that he has experienced difficulty hearing consistently since service, he is not competent to opine on whether he has hearing loss for VA purposes, as described above and in 38 C.F.R. § 3.385. The issue is medically complex, as it requires knowledge of the interpretation of complicated diagnostic medical testing. Jandreau v. Nicholson, 492 F.3d 1372, 1377, 1377 n.4 (Fed. Cir. 2007). The Veteran’s VA treatment records do not show that he has had hearing loss to that extent during the period on appeal, and the October 2012 VA examination opinion affirmatively shows that he did not have hearing loss to that extent to the extent as would constitute a disability on the date of that examination. In sum, there is no competent evidence in the claims file that the Veteran has had hearing loss to the extent described in 38 C.F.R. § 3.385 during the period on appeal, and there is competent evidence that he did not have any such hearing loss at the time of the October 2012 VA examination. As such, the preponderance of the evidence weighs against the Veteran’s claim, and the claim is therefore denied. 2. Entitlement to service connection for tinnitus The Veteran also claims that he has experienced tinnitus since the time of his active duty service as a result of his in-service noise exposure. See Transcript of Hearing Before Board of Veterans’ Appeals (Board) dated in June 2018. His STRs support that claim, as they show that in June 2009, the Veteran reported constant ringing in his ears after and as a result of his exposure to the loud noise of an explosion during his active military service. The report from the above-mentioned October 2012 VA examination opinion shows that the examiner was of the opinion that the Veteran’s tinnitus was less likely as not related to his service, but the examiner rendered that opinion before the Veteran’s STRs were received. The examiner cited medical literature in support of his opinion which provided that the “[a] diagnosis of noise-induced tinnitus requires a diagnosis of noise-induced hearing loss or an association between tinnitus onset and some noise-related event.” Considering the Veteran’s STRs and the complaints of post-explosion tinnitus therein, the Board finds that there is adequate evidence of an association between tinnitus onset and a noise-related event. Considering these findings, and the Veteran’s consistent testimony as to the existence of and chronicity of his tinnitus since service, the Board finds that the evidence is at least in relative equipoise as to this appeal. Accordingly, the Veteran is entitled to service connection for tinnitus, and this claim is granted. REASONS FOR REMAND Entitlement to service connection for right and left knee conditions is remanded. The Veteran has not been afforded a VA examination for his claimed right and left knee conditions. His STRs show that he complained of knee pain beginning during an in-service combat fitness test (CFT), which is consistent with his testimony during the June 2018 Board hearing. The Veteran’s VA treatment records reflect that he has continued to complain of knee pain, and that in September 2012, it was determined that he had a small oblique tear involving the posterior horn of the medial meniscus. The Veteran also claims that he may have sustained one or more knee conditions as a result of an in-service foot fracture. Considering these statements and records, the Board finds that the Veteran should be afforded a VA examination for his claimed right and left knee conditions prior to the Board’s adjudication of this appeal. The matter is REMANDED for the following action: Schedule the Veteran for a VA examination by an appropriate clinician to determine the nature and etiology of any right or left knee conditions. The examiner must opine whether any such conditions are at least as likely as not (a 50 percent or greater probability) related to an in-service injury, event, or disease, including the Veteran’s reported knee injury during a combat fitness test (CFT) in or about July 2009. The examiner should also opine on whether it is at least as likely as not that any such conditions (1) began during active service, (2) manifested within one year after discharge from service, or (3) were noted during service with continuity of the same symptomatology since service. A. C. MACKENZIE Veterans Law Judge Board of Veterans’ Appeals ATTORNEY FOR THE BOARD C. Banks, Associate Counsel