RECORD OF PROCEEDINGS
PHYSICAL DISABILITY BOARD OF REVIEW

NAME: XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX 	CASE:  PD-2015-01522
BRANCH OF SERVICE:  Army 	SEPARATION DATE:  20050220

SUMMARY OF CASE:  Data extracted from the available evidence of record reflects that this covered individual (CI) was an active duty E2, Food Service Specialist, medically separated for “bilateral sensorineural hearing loss,” with a disability rating of 0%.

CI CONTENTION:  Review of all conditions is requested.  The complete submission is at Exhibit A.  

SCOPE OF REVIEW:  The panel’s scope of review is defined in DoDI 6040.44.  It is limited to review of disability ratings assigned to those conditions determined by the Physical Evaluation Board (PEB) to be unfitting for continued military service and when specifically requested by the CI, those conditions identified by the PEB, but determined to be not unfitting or non-compensable.  Any conditions outside the panel’s defined scope of review and any contention not requested in this application may remain eligible for future consideration by the Board for Correction of Military Records.  Furthermore, the panel’s authority is limited to assessing the fairness and accuracy of PEB rating determinations and recommending corrections, where appropriate.  The panel’s assessment of the PEB rating determination is based on review of medical records and all available evidence for application of the Veterans Affairs Schedule for Rating Disabilities (VASRD) standards to the unfitting medical condition(s) at the time of separation.  The panel has neither the role nor the authority to compensate for post-separation progression or complications of service-connected conditions.  That role and authority is granted by Congress to the Department of Veterans Affairs, operating under a different set of laws.  The panel gives consideration to VA evidence, particularly within 12 months of separation, but only to the extent that it reasonably reflects the severity of the disability at the time of separation.  

RATING COMPARISON:  

SERVICE PEB - 20041228	VARD - 20111213	
Condition	Code	Rating	Condition	Code	Rating	Exam	
Bilateral Sensorineural Hearing Loss	6100	0%	Bilateral Hearing Loss	6100	NSC	20111213	
			Tinnitus	6260	NSC		
COMBINED RATING:  0%	COMBINED RATING OF ALL VA CONDITIONS:  0%	

ANALYSIS SUMMARY:  

Bilateral Sensorineural Hearing Loss.  According to the service treatment record and the Medical Evaluation Board (MEB) narrative summary (NARSUM), the CI’s bilateral sensorineural hearing loss condition began in 2003.  He entered the military with borderline hearing loss and was fitted with bilateral hearing aids on 23 April 2004.  He was exposed to significant noise on the ranges with decrease in hearing in both ears.  

Comprehensive audiometry testing on 31 August 2004, noted hearing thresholds as follows:
                           1000 Hz 	2000 Hz 	3000 Hz            40.00Hz	DISCRIMINATION
Left Ear:  	40		45		45		45		100%
Right Ear:   	40		35		45		45		100% 
The 27 September 2004 MEB NARSUM examination, 5 months prior to separation, noted complaints of not hearing well.  He was able to perform his job with bilateral hearing aids.  He was in category “E” on Sprint testing which recommends separation from service. Physical examination showed normal bilateral auditory canals and tympanic membranes with no evidence of middle ear effusions or retraction pockets.  The examiner noted the bilateral moderate sensorineural hearing loss was present prior to enlistment but was permanently service aggravated.  

At the 13 December 2011 VA Compensation and Pension evaluation, 7 years after separation, the CI reported tinnitus and bilateral hearing loss.  Physical examination showed no objective evidence of the condition worsening after entry into the service.  

The panel directed attention to its rating recommendation based on the above evidence. The PEB rated the bilateral sensorineural condition 0%, coded 6100 (hearing loss).  The VA did not service-connect the bilateral sensorineural condition, citing that it was not linked to military service.  According to the VASRD rating system for hearing loss under code 6100, after the summation of the pure tone thresholds for each ear are divided by 4 at 1000, 2000, 3000 and 4000 Hertz, the left ear would equal 41.25 and the right ear would equal 43.75.  The panel agreed that both the left ear and the right ear would be assigned Roman Numeral I, resulting in a rating of 0% according to the hearing loss table, as assigned by the PEB.  After due deliberation, considering all of the evidence and mindful of VASRD §4.3 (reasonable doubt), the panel concluded that there was insufficient cause to recommend a change in the PEB adjudication for the bilateral sensorineural hearing loss condition.  

BOARD FINDINGS:  In the matter of the bilateral sensorineural hearing loss condition and IAW VASRD §4.87, the panel unanimously recommends no change in the PEB adjudication.  There were no other conditions within the Board’s scope of review for consideration.  The Board, therefore, recommends that there be no re-characterization of the CI’s disability and separation determination.  

The following documentary evidence was considered:

Exhibit A.  DD Form 294, dated 20150602, w/atchs
Exhibit B.  Service Treatment Record
Exhibit C.  Department of Veterans Affairs Treatment Record

AR20170007431, XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX 

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Dear XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX:

	The Department of Defense Physical Disability Board of Review (DoD PDBR) reviewed your application and found your separation disability rating and your separation from the Army for disability with severance pay to be accurate.  I have reviewed the Board’s recommendation and record of proceedings (copy enclosed), and I accept its recommendation.  I regret to inform you that your application to the DoD PDBR is denied.  

	This decision is final.  Recourse within the Department of Defense or the Department of the Army is exhausted; however, you have the option to seek relief by filing suit in a court of appropriate jurisdiction.

Sincerely,					       
						      					
Enclosure