The Board found that the veteran does not have additional disability associated with blindness of the left eye that was caused by carelessness, negligence, lack of skill, or errors in judgment, or similar instances of fault on the part of VA, or that was caused by an unforeseen event.
The deciding factor: The May 2007 VA examiner opined that the veteran's visual acuity had stabilized at 20/60 following the laser surgery, and that the loss of visual acuity would have progressed even faster without VA treatment.
- Claimed conditions
- blindness of the left eye
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- January 7, 2009
- Citation
- 0900598
Veterans Law Judge
Decisions by this judge: 2,977 · Granted: 27% (granted or partly granted, in the vetted decisions on this site)
Judge attribution: 2025 complete; earlier years partial.
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 0900598.
What this means for you
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What you can do next
Related decisions
Other Board decisions on a similar condition or argued the same way.
- Partly granted
The appeal for service connection of blindness was dismissed. The appeals for hypertension, diabetes rating, and TDIU were remanded.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board has determined that the Veteran's service connection claim for open angle glaucoma and blindness of the left eye is granted. The case is also remanded to attempt verification of in-service exposure to chemicals, including tear gas, during basic training at Fort Leonard Wood, Missouri from November 1979 to April 1980. If confirmed, a new medical opinion will be obtained regarding whether open angle glaucoma and blindness were caused by such exposure.
- Denied
The Board denied service connection for bilateral knee disability and blindness of the left eye, finding that there was no evidence to support a nexus between these conditions and active service.
- Dismissed
The Veteran withdrew his claim for service connection for blindness of the left eye, and the Board has dismissed this appeal.
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