Glaucoma decisions — 2011

The Veteran's chronic simple glaucoma was rated at 30 percent prior to January 13, 2010 and increased to 70 percent since that date.,Since January 13, 2010, the Veteran does not meet the criteria for a higher rating of 100 percent under DC 6080.

The Veteran's appeal has been dismissed due to his death.

The Board has remanded the case due to a failure to obtain service treatment records and for further development of the claim, including obtaining medical records from Fort Benning Army Hospital and scheduling a VA examination.

The Board has remanded the case for further development and consideration, including obtaining additional medical opinions regarding the Veteran's glaucoma diagnosis and its onset during service.

The Board has determined that the Veteran's chronic left eye disorder, including pigmentary glaucoma, was not incurred in or aggravated by active service and denied his claim for service connection.

The Board has remanded the case for further consideration, including scheduling a Travel Board hearing.

The Board found that the Veteran's glaucoma is not related to his active service and denied his claim for service connection.

The Veteran's hypertension was found to have its onset during his active service and is considered a compensable disability. The other conditions were not found to be related to the Veteran's military service.

The Board denied the Veteran's claims of service connection for glaucoma, bilateral hearing loss, and tinnitus. The evidence did not establish a link between these conditions and his military service.

The Veteran's service-connected glaucoma was evaluated at a 20 percent rating from November 30, 2005, to July 31, 2007. The evidence did not meet the criteria for a higher rating under Diagnostic Codes 6013-6080.

The Board has reopened the Veteran's claim of service connection for frostbite, both hands. The new evidence presented relates to an unestablished fact necessary to substantiate the merits of the claim - his complaints of hand pain post-service. Service connection was not granted as there is no competent medical evidence showing a current disability due to frostbite sustained in service.

The Veteran's erectile dysfunction disability is proximately caused or aggravated by the service-connected diabetes mellitus.

The Board denied the Veteran's claim of service connection for a bilateral eye disorder, including glaucoma. The decision concluded that his current visual acuity issues are due to refractive error and not related to service.

The Veteran's appeal is being remanded for a more contemporaneous assessment of his service-connected glaucoma due to additional VA outpatient treatment records and the need for a new VA examination.

The Board has remanded the case for further development due to incomplete medical opinions from a previous VA examination.

The Veteran's only service-connected disability, bilateral hearing loss, does not render him unable to tend to the basic functions of self-care without regular assistance from another person or leave him vulnerable to the hazards and dangers incident to his environment. The Board finds that the threshold legal criteria for special monthly compensation based on the need for the regular aid and attendance of another person or upon housebound status are not met.

The Board found that the Veteran's current eye problems are attributable to a known clinical diagnosis (narrow angle glaucoma) and not related to his military service, including his deployment in the Southwest Asia Theater of Operations during the Persian Gulf War. Therefore, he is not entitled to service connection for an undiagnosed illness or direct service connection.

The Board has remanded the case for further development, including scheduling a VA ophthalmology examination and obtaining additional medical records.

The Board found no current evidence of glaucoma and concluded that the Veteran's claimed disability is not related to service or a service-connected condition.

The Board has determined that additional development is needed before the claims for service connection for hypertension and glaucoma can be adjudicated.