Citation Nr: 18160076
Decision Date: 12/21/18	Archive Date: 12/20/18

DOCKET NO. 15-10 875
DATE:	December 21, 2018
ORDER
Service connection for tinnitus is granted.
FINDING OF FACT
Resolving reasonable doubt in the Veteran’s favor, tinnitus had its onset in service.
CONCLUSION OF LAW
Resolving reasonable doubt in the Veteran’s favor, the criteria for service connection for tinnitus have been met. 38 U.S.C. §§ 1110, 5107(b); 38 C.F.R. §§ 3.102, 3.303.
REASONS AND BASES FOR FINDING AND CONCLUSION
The Veteran had active service from May 1967 to January 1970. 
This matter comes before the Board of Veterans’ Appeals (Board) on appeal from a March 2014 rating decision of a Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) Regional Office (RO).

1. Service connection for tinnitus
Service connection may be granted for disability resulting from disease or injury incurred in or aggravated by active military service. 38 U.S.C. § 1110; 38 C.F.R. § 3.303. VA must give due consideration to all pertinent lay and medical evidence in a case where a Veteran is seeking service connection. 38 U.S.C. § 1154 (a). When there is an approximate balance of positive and negative evidence regarding any issue material to the determination of a matter, the Secretary shall give the benefit of the doubt to the Veteran. 38 U.S.C. § 5107 (b).
The Veteran’s military occupational specialty in the Army was intelligence specialist.  He served in the Republic of Vietnam from January 1969 to January 1970.
On VA examination in February 2014, the Veteran reported military noise exposure from to excessive noise in the form of 105 mm howitzers and rocket attacks without the use of hearing protection. He denied a history of civilian occupational noise exposure.  The Veteran also denied a history of civilian recreational noise exposure.  The Veteran reported that he had recurrent tinnitus, which had its onset in 1969 after exposures to howitzers in Vietnam while stationed at an artillery base.  The Veteran reported that his tinnitus was occasional at that time and then became constant “a few years ago.” He described the tinnitus as “ringing.” The examiner opined that the Veteran’s tinnitus was “less likely as not (less than 50/50 probability) caused by or a result of military service.  The Veteran denied ear, nose, and throat trouble at entrance on 4/11/67 and at exit on 1/28/70.  There were no reports of tinnitus within the Veteran’s [service treatment records].  The Veteran’s hearing sensitivity thresholds were found to be essentially stable between entrance and exit examinations.”  
The VA examiner’s negative nexus opinion was largely based upon a lack of evidence of threshold shift of hearing acuity in service. The Board has considered this opinion, however the lack of documented threshold shift of hearing acuity in service is not fatal to the Veteran’s claim for service connection for tinnitus. Indeed, tinnitus is diagnosed based on an individual’s subjective complaints.
The Veteran’s report of tinnitus since noise exposure in service is deemed credible. As the Veteran has a current diagnosis of tinnitus and history of noise exposure, reasonable doubt is resolved in the Veteran’s favor. Service connection for tinnitus is warranted. See 38 C.F.R. § 3.303 (b), (d).


). 
C. CRAWFORD
Veterans Law Judge
Board of Veterans’ Appeals
ATTORNEY FOR THE BOARD	M. G. Mazzucchelli, Counsel