The Board granted service connection for a left eye condition, to include defective vision with amblyopia, external strabismus, and exotropia, based on aggravation of a preexisting disability.
The deciding factor: The veteran's left eye disability increased in severity during his military service, and the increase was not due to the natural progress of the disease.
- Claimed conditions
- defective vision with amblyopia, external strabismus, exotropia
- How they argued it
- Aggravation of a pre-existing condition
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating
- Not verified here — check the original decision
- Decision date
- January 21, 2009
- Citation
- 0902168
Veterans Law Judge
Decisions by this judge: 2,421 · Granted: 29% (granted or partly granted, in the indexed 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. Search VA.gov for the original decision (opens in a new tab) using citation 0902168.
What this means for you
A grant means the Board allowed the benefit or issue identified in this decision. Review the original order: other issues in the same appeal may have a different outcome, and this decision does not predict another claim.
What you can do next
Use your own notice and decision stage. A remanded issue is not a final court-appealable denial. VA review guidance and CAVC filing instructions (U.S. federal; reviewed October 7, 2026).
Related decisions
Other Board decisions on a similar condition or argued the same way.
- Whole decision: Remanded (sent back)
The Board remands the claims for service connection for various conditions, including knee and back pain, exotropia, GERD, and hemorrhoids, due to pre-decisional duty-to-assist errors.
- Whole decision: Remanded (sent back)
The Board remands the Veteran's claim for service connection for astigmatism and exotropia to obtain a VA medical opinion regarding the etiology of his diagnosed eye conditions.
- Whole decision: Dismissed
The Veteran's appeal for a rating greater than 30 percent for his right-eye impairment to include blindness, exotropia, optic nerve pallor, cataract, presbyopia, retinal and macular scarring from October 22, 2008 is dismissed as moot because he is already in receipt of the 30 percent rating he sought.
- Whole decision: Granted
The Board has granted service connection for the Veteran's left eye condition, which includes blindness, exotropia, optic atrophy, and retinal detachment. The decision finds that these conditions are related to his in-service injury while playing basketball.
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