The Board has denied the veteran's claim for service connection for bilateral myopia and astigmatism (myopic astigmatism) as there is no evidence of any disease or trauma to the eyes during service, and refractive error is not a condition that can be granted service connection.
The deciding factor: There was no evidence of any eye injury or disease in service, and the veteran's visual acuity did not change between entrance and exit from service. Refractive error is not considered a disease or injury for which service connection may be granted.
- Claimed conditions
- bilateral myopia, bilateral astigmatism
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- August 9, 2000
- Citation
- 0020822
This is a plain-language summary generated by AI from a public Board of Veterans’ Appeals decision. It can contain errors — always verify against the original. Look up the original decision on VA.gov (opens in a new tab) using citation 0020822.
What this means for you
A denial is a starting point, not the end of the road. You can see why this claim fell short — and, if you are still inside the one-year window, the appeal lanes that may remain open to you.
What you can do next
Related decisions
Other Board decisions on a similar condition or argued the same way.
- Denied
The Board has denied the Veteran's claim for service connection for bilateral myopia, finding that it is a congenital defect and not related to military service.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board has remanded the case due to insufficient evidence and a need for an addendum opinion regarding the etiology of the Veteran's eye disabilities, including bilateral cataracts, hypertensive retinopathy, hypermetropia, astigmatism, presbyopia, unspecified peripheral retinal degeneration, dry eye syndrome, presence of intraocular lens, old branch retinal vein occlusion, and bilateral pinguecula.
- Dismissed
The Veteran withdrew his appeal before the Board could make a decision on the claims. The Board dismissed the appeal as a result.
- Denied
The Board denied service connection for bilateral astigmatism and hypermetropia as these conditions are due to refractive errors, which are not considered diseases or injuries under VA compensation law.
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