{"page":"https://casescribe.ai/explorer/secondary/hearing-loss-secondary-to-tinnitus","generated_at":"2026-10-03T18:34:24.975Z","data_as_of":{"decisions":944125,"first_year":2017,"last_year":2026,"latest_decision":"2026-04-30","cfr":"2026-10-01","m21":"2026-09-29"},"about":{"publisher":"CaseScribe AI (VA Law Explorer)","source":"Public Board of Veterans' Appeals decisions (appeals of VA decisions, not VA's first decisions), M21-1 Adjudication Procedures Manual, 38 CFR Parts 3 and 4.","method":"Outcomes are issue-level: each condition the Board decided in a decision counts once. Decision data is extracted by AI and can contain errors. Rates describe past appeals and do not predict any claim.","disclaimer":"For research only. CaseScribe AI is not a law firm and this is not legal advice. Verify figures against the source decisions and regulations.","attribution":"Cite as: VA Law Explorer, CaseScribe AI, with the page URL."},"data":{"claim":"Hearing loss secondary to tinnitus","secondary_condition":"Hearing loss","service_connected_disability":"tinnitus","decisions":400,"years":"2017-2026","granted_pct":13.5,"denied_pct":18.8,"remanded_pct":67.8,"granted_on_merits_pct":41.9,"by_year":[{"year":2017,"issues":25,"granted_pct":12,"denied_pct":36,"remanded_pct":52},{"year":2018,"issues":24,"granted_pct":16.7,"denied_pct":20.8,"remanded_pct":62.5},{"year":2019,"issues":28,"granted_pct":21.4,"denied_pct":7.1,"remanded_pct":71.4},{"year":2020,"issues":42,"granted_pct":14.3,"denied_pct":21.4,"remanded_pct":64.3},{"year":2021,"issues":67,"granted_pct":13.4,"denied_pct":14.9,"remanded_pct":71.6},{"year":2022,"issues":50,"granted_pct":18,"denied_pct":18,"remanded_pct":64},{"year":2023,"issues":51,"granted_pct":9.8,"denied_pct":13.7,"remanded_pct":76.5},{"year":2024,"issues":48,"granted_pct":14.6,"denied_pct":14.6,"remanded_pct":70.8},{"year":2025,"issues":56,"granted_pct":7.1,"denied_pct":25,"remanded_pct":67.9}],"benefit_of_doubt_in_grants_pct":94.4,"evidence_on_merits":[{"evidence":"va_exam_favorable","decisions_with":48,"granted_pct_with":58.3,"granted_pct_without":38.1},{"evidence":"va_exam_unfavorable","decisions_with":336,"granted_pct_with":39.5,"granted_pct_without":70},{"evidence":"nexus_positive","decisions_with":42,"granted_pct_with":60.9,"granted_pct_without":37.7},{"evidence":"nexus_negative","decisions_with":272,"granted_pct_with":36.4,"granted_pct_without":53.7},{"evidence":"private_opinion","decisions_with":76,"granted_pct_with":37.1,"granted_pct_without":43.6},{"evidence":"lay_statement","decisions_with":299,"granted_pct_with":37.4,"granted_pct_without":78.6}],"top_reasons":{"granted":[{"reason":"service connection established","decisions":8},{"reason":"in-service noise exposure conceded","decisions":8},{"reason":"current diagnosis established","decisions":4},{"reason":"caused by the service-connected disability","decisions":3},{"reason":"continuity of symptomatology since service","decisions":3},{"reason":"tinnitus likely aggravates hearing loss","decisions":2}],"denied":[{"reason":"preponderance of the evidence against the claim","decisions":12},{"reason":"va examiner: less likely than not related to service","decisions":9},{"reason":"service records negative or silent","decisions":8},{"reason":"no in-service complaints, treatment or diagnosis","decisions":5},{"reason":"no current diagnosis","decisions":5},{"reason":"no continuity of symptomatology","decisions":4}]},"recent_examples":{"granted":[{"case_id":"A26019640","year":2026,"judge":"A. S. CARACCIOLO","rationale":"Veteran's credible reports of decreased hearing acuity and worsening tinnitus; Private audiologist conclusion links hearing loss to tinnitus; Negative VA opinion inadequate for relying solely on lack of threshold shift"},{"case_id":"25013363","year":2025,"judge":"STEVEN D. REISS","rationale":"Veteran claims hearing loss due to acoustic trauma from artillery.; Service connection for tinnitus is established.; April 2025 VA opinion found hearing loss aggravated by tinnitus.; May 2025 VA opinion questioned aggravation, but Board favored April opinion.; Board applied benefit of the doubt due … [truncated, 112 chars omitted]"},{"case_id":"A25087974","year":2025,"judge":"A. S. CARACCIOLO","rationale":"Veteran claimed hearing loss secondary to tinnitus.; Favorable findings in December 2024 rating decision.; Board agreed with favorable findings and granted service connection."}],"denied":[{"case_id":"A26028564","year":2026,"judge":"T. RAYMOND","rationale":"No in-service indication of hearing loss in service treatment records.; Hearing loss attributed to aging/presbycusis, not noise exposure.; No medical literature supports tinnitus causing or worsening hearing loss."},{"case_id":"A26006352","year":2026,"judge":"STEVEN D. REISS","rationale":"Only audiological evaluation from June 2010 showed normal hearing in left ear and mild loss in right ear.; Examiner opined hearing loss not related to service.; Veteran failed to attend June 2022 VA examination after canceling a prior one, frustrating evidence development."},{"case_id":"26000679","year":2026,"judge":"JENNA BRANT","rationale":"No evidence of right ear hearing loss during service or within one year following separation.; VA examinations consistently showed normal right ear hearing with no significant threshold shifts.; Examiners opined delayed onset of noise-induced hearing loss is unlikely and hearing loss in one ear does… [truncated, 29 chars omitted]"}]},"how_argued":{"note":"From keyword matches in each issue's AI summary and rationale, not the full decision. Only issues whose text names a medical link are counted under pathways; one issue can name several. A link named in a denial was often the argument the Board rejected.","issues":401,"aggravation_discussed":{"issues":170,"granted_pct":13.5},"causation_only":{"issues":231,"granted_pct":13.4},"issues_naming_a_pathway_pct":0.2,"pathways":[]},"how_va_rates":null,"requirements":"38 CFR 3.310: a current diagnosis, a service-connected disability, and medical evidence that it caused (3.310(a)) or aggravated (3.310(b)) the condition."}}