Citation Nr: 22017372 Decision Date: 03/24/22 Archive Date: 03/24/22 DOCKET NO. 19-11 599 DATE: March 24, 2022 ORDER Service connection for bilateral hearing loss is granted. Service connection for tinnitus is granted. Service connection for traumatic brain injury (TBI) and any residuals thereof, to include headaches, is granted. FINDINGS OF FACT 1. The weight of the evidence of record shows that it is at least as likely as not that the Veteran's bilateral hearing loss and tinnitus were caused by military noise exposure. 2. The weight of the evidence of record shows that it is at least as likely as not that the Veteran sustained a head trauma in service resulting in residual headaches. CONCLUSIONS OF LAW 1. The criteria for service connection for bilateral hearing loss have been met. 38 U.S.C. § 1110; 38 C.F.R. §§ 3.303, 3.385. 2. The criteria for service connection for bilateral tinnitus have been met. 38 U.S.C. § 1110; 38 C.F.R. §§ 3.303, 3.307, 3.309. 3. The criteria for service connection for a traumatic brain injury and any residuals thereof, to include headaches, have been met. 38 U.S.C. §§ 1110, 1154; 38 C.F.R. §§ 3.303, 3.304, 3.310. REASONS AND BASES FOR FINDINGS AND CONCLUSIONS The Veteran honorably served on active duty from January 1966 to January 1968. In a November 2017 rating decision, the Regional Office (RO) denied his claim for service connection for bilateral hearing loss, tinnitus, and headaches secondary to a head trauma in service. The Veteran appealed. In November 2021, he testified at a Board hearing, a transcript of which is of record. At the outset, the Board notes that the RO could not locate the Veteran's military personnel file and it was initially unclear where the Veteran had served. However, in its March 2022 memorandum, VA has finally conceded the Veteran's "boots on the ground" service during the Vietnam War Era. With that, the Board's notes its incidental finding that the Veteran's VA treatment records reflect a diagnosis of hyperthyroidism. Although not on appeal here, the Board takes judicial notice that this disability has been recently added to the VA's list of diseases presumptively associated with an exposure to herbicide agents, such as Agent Orange. See 38 U.S.C. §§ 1116(a)(2)(K), 1116A. To this end, the Veteran is encouraged to consult with his reprehensive. Meanwhile, in seeking service connection for his bilateral hearing loss, tinnitus, and headaches secondary to a head trauma sustained in a combat environment during his service in the Republic of Vietnam, the Veteran maintains that these disabilities are due to his military service. Service connection generally is granted for a disability incurred due or incidental to service. 38 U.S.C. § 1110; 38 C.F.R. § 3.303. Establishing an entitlement to this benefit generally requires the evidence to show: (1) the existence of the claimed disability; (2) a relevant traumatic event in service, and (3) a causal link between the two. See Shedden v. Principi, 381 F.3d 1163 (Fed. Cir. 2004). Such a causal link may be established by showing the onset of associated symptomatology in service and its continuity since service until such time when the conclusive clinical diagnoses are rendered by a medical professional. See 38 C.F.R. §§ 3.303(b), (d), 3.307(a). In cases presenting satisfactory lay or other evidence that an injury was incurred in combat, such evidence will be accepted as sufficient proof of service connection, even if no official record of an in-service injury exists, so long as the proffered evidence is consistent with the circumstances, conditions or hardships of combat service. See 38 U.S.C. § 1154(b); 38 C.F.R. § 3.304(d). The hearing transcript reflects the Veteran's statements under oath that part of his duties involved transporting ammunition to the infantry on the front lines and then recovering dead and wounded soldiers. This involved exposure to noise of rotary wing aircraft, as well as small arms, mortars, and other munition fire. During one such transport, the Veteran was hit by mortar shrapnel on a left side of his head just above his temple and was evacuated to a floating naval hospital where he was given stiches and kept for several days. To that end, he submitted a photograph showing him in uniform aboard a naval vessel, while the left side of his head appears unevenly shaven and swollen. Subsequently, the Veteran reported that he has developed hearing difficulties, ringing in his ears, and daily headaches, all of which have continued to the present day. The November 2017 VA audiology report reflects that the Veteran's hearing acuity thresholds meet the VA's definition of a disability due to hearing impairment. See 38 C.F.R. § 3.385. In a December 2021 correspondence, Dr. M.A.F., DC, confirms that the Veteran has been having daily headaches for many years. A November 2021 letter from his family physician, Dr. E.S.M., MD, further reflects a medical opinion that the Veteran's headaches are consistent with a head trauma sustained in service, as related by the Veteran. The Veteran's recount of his service is wholly consistent with the circumstances and other hardships of military service in a combat environment where a regular recordkeeping is impractical. To that end, the record shows that the Veteran served with the 3d Marine Infantry Division out of Camp Pendleton, while he was treated at a floating naval hospital off mainland Vietnam, where his regular service treatment records were highly unlikely to have been maintained. The Veteran's combat experience is further corroborated by the August 2021 statements of his brother, wife, and school friend, all attesting to noticing behavioral changes and the Veteran's unwillingness to discuss his military experiences after he had returned from Vietnam. His VA treatment records further reflect an April 2005 note of the Veteran's complaints of war flashbacks. As such, the Board finds that the Veteran's competent testimony as to the onset and continuity of his symptomatology is credible. The cases, like this, ultimately turn on the credibility of the Veteran's statements. See Buchanan v. Nicholson, 451 F.3d 1331 (Fed. Cir. 2006). Absent any persuasive affirmative evidence to the contrary, the Board finds that the Veteran's reports of military noise exposure, onset of hearing difficulties and tinnitus, and sustaining a head trauma resulting in headaches in service are credible. These disabilities are confirmed by the medical evidence of record and are shown to have continued to the present. As such, the legal criteria for the benefits sought here have been met. Accordingly, the appeal is granted. MATTHEW W. BLACKWELDER Veterans Law Judge Board of Veterans' Appeals Attorney for the Board Alex Bardin, Associate Counsel The Board's decision in this case is binding only with respect to the instant matter decided. This decision is not precedential and does not establish VA policies or interpretations of general applicability. 38 C.F.R. § 20.1303.