Citation Nr: 18160729 Decision Date: 12/27/18 Archive Date: 12/27/18 DOCKET NO. 16-52 757 DATE: December 27, 2018 ORDER New and material evidence having been received, reopening the claim of entitlement to service connection for a left ear hearing loss disability is granted. Entitlement to service connection for left ear hearing loss disability is granted. FINDINGS OF FACT 1. An unappealed August 2012 Board decision denied the Veteran’s claim of entitlement to service connection for left ear hearing loss. 2. The evidence received since the August 2012 Board decision is not cumulative or redundant of the evidence previously of record at the time of the prior denial, and raises a reasonable possibility of substantiating the claim for service connection for a left ear hearing loss. 3. The Veteran’s left ear hearing loss is etiologically related to acoustic trauma sustained in active service. CONCLUSIONS OF LAW 1. New and material evidence has been received to reopen the claim of entitlement to service connection for a left ear hearing loss. 38 U.S.C. § 5108 (2012); 38 C.F.R. § 3.156 (2018). 2. The criteria for entitlement to service connection for left ear hearing loss have been met. 38 U.S.C. §§ 1110, 1131 (2012); 38 C.F.R. §§ 3.102, 3.303, 3.385 (2018). REASONS AND BASES FOR FINDINGS AND CONCLUSIONS The Veteran had active service in the United States Marine Corps (USMC) from May 1990 to April 1994. These matters come before the Board of Veterans’ Appeals (Board) on appeal from an April 2014 rating decision issued by the VA Regional Office (RO) in St. Louis, Missouri. The Board notes that the Veteran also disagreed with the April 2014 denial of entitlement to service connection for right ear hearing loss disability. The Veteran was issued a statement of the case in September 2016 which addressed the issue of entitlement to service connection for bilateral hearing loss disability. However, in his October 2016 substantive appeal, the Veteran specifically limited his appeal to the issue of entitlement to service connection for left ear hearing loss disability. As such, the Board has limited its consideration accordingly. Claim to Reopen In an August 2012 Board decision, the Veteran was denied service connection for a left ear hearing loss based on a finding that the Veteran’s left ear hearing loss was not related to his active service. In that decision, the Board considered the Veteran’s service treatment records, statements from the Veteran regarding his contentions, and VA medical examination reports. The Veteran was notified of that decision and provided notice of his procedural and appellate rights. The Veteran did not appeal the Board’s decision. Therefore, the August 2012 Board decision is final. The evidence received since the August 2012 Board decision includes a March 2013 positive nexus opinion from a private examiner. The Board finds that the additional evidence added to the record is new and material. In that regard, the evidence is new, as it was not previously considered by VA, and it is material, as it raises a reasonable possibility of substantiating the claim of entitlement to service connection for left ear hearing loss disability. Therefore, reopening of the claim of entitlement to service connection for left ear hearing loss disability is warranted. Service Connection -- Left Ear Hearing Loss Disability The Veteran has contended that his left ear hearing loss disability is related to his in-service noise exposure. Specifically, the Veteran has reported that as an aviation supply clerk, he worked on different flight lines and was exposed to aviation noise from departing and landing jets and helicopter testing, and that he was exposed to large and small arms fire noise during weapons training. In addition, he reported that while in service, hearing protection was not always required. The Board notes that the Veteran has been granted entitlement to service connection for tinnitus as a result of in-service noise exposure. Therefore, the Board concedes that the Veteran sustained acoustic trauma while in active service. Service treatment records (STRs) are silent for complaints of, or treatment for left ear hearing loss while the Veteran was in active service. Further, there is no indication from the STRs that the Veteran had left ear hearing loss disability for VA purposes at any time during active service. Regardless, the Veteran has reported that he first experienced symptoms associated hearing loss in his left ear while he was in active service and that those symptoms have continued since that time. Heuer v. Brown, 7 Vet. App. 379 (1995); Falzone v. Brown, 8 Vet. App. 398 (1995); Caldwell v. Derwinski, 1 Vet. App. 466 (1991). Moreover, the Board finds the Veteran to be credible in that respect. In April 2011, the Veteran was afforded a VA audiological evaluation. The Veteran reported the above described in-service noise exposure. Audiometric testing at that time showed the Veteran to have left ear hearing loss disability for VA purposes. See 38 C.F.R. § 3.385 (2018). Of record is a March 2013 letter from the Veteran’s private audiologist. The Veteran’s private audiologist opined that it was more likely than not that the Veteran’s hearing loss was related to in-service noise exposure. In that regard, the audiologist noted that the Veteran was exposed to excessive noise while in active service, and that he had very little hazardous noise exposure subsequent to his separation from service. Further, it was noted that the Veteran’s left ear hearing loss was consistent with a notched configuration consistent with hearing loss resulting from noise exposure. The private audiologist also noted that the Veteran was service-connected for tinnitus as a result of noise exposure, which was usually a pre-curser to hearing loss. The Board finds that the March 2013 private audiologist opinion is adequate because the examiner thoroughly reviewed the claims file and discussed the relevant evidence, considered the contentions of the Veteran, and provided a thorough supporting rationale for the conclusions reached. Barr v. Nicholson, 21 Vet. App. 303 (2007); Stefl v. Nicholson, 21 Vet. App. 120 (2007); Nieves-Rodriguez v. Peake, 22 Vet. App. 295 (2008). The Board acknowledges that there are multiple negative medical opinions of record. However, those opinions are assigned little probative value as they are not as complete and detailed as the March 2013 opinion provided by the Veteran’s private audiologist. In sum, the Veteran sustained acoustic trauma in active service. The Veteran has competently and credibly asserted that he first experienced left ear hearing loss while in active service, and that his symptoms have continued since that time. The Veteran has a current diagnosis of left ear hearing loss disability for VA purposes. A private audiologist has opined that the Veteran’s left ear hearing loss is etiologically related to noise exposure sustained in active service. Accordingly, the Board finds that the evidence for and against the claim of entitlement to service connection for left ear hearing loss disability is at least in equipoise. Therefore, reasonable doubt must be resolved in favor of the Veteran and entitlement to service connection for left ear hearing loss disability is warranted. 38 U.S.C. § 5107 (b) (2012); Gilbert v. Derwinski, 1 Vet. App. 49 (1990). Kristin Haddock Veterans Law Judge Board of Veterans’ Appeals ATTORNEY FOR THE BOARD Christina Quant, Law Clerk