The Board denied higher ratings for the cervical spine, post-traumatic headaches, and deviated nasal septum. The Veteran's visual acuity in his left eye was 20/400, and he is legally blind in that eye; however, a remand is necessary to determine the severity of the nonservice-connected right eye.
The deciding factor: The criteria for higher ratings were not met based on the evidence provided. The Veteran's visual acuity did not meet the criteria for a higher rating, and there was no evidence of disfigurement or other characteristics that would warrant a compensable rating for his deviated nasal septum.
- Claimed conditions
- Left eye posterior subcapsular cataract, status post retinal tear and ocular hypertension, Left cornea scar, Degenerative changes of the cervical spine, Post-traumatic headaches, Deviated nasal septum
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- March 24, 2009
- Citation
- 0910832
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 denied service connection for a cervical spine disability as there was no evidence of an in-service injury or disease related to active duty, ADT, or IDT.
- Partly granted
The Board granted entitlement to TDIU from January 23, 2015 to October 16, 2017 based on the aggregate impact of the Veteran's service-connected disabilities precluding substantially gainful employment. The Board denied service connection for benign prostatic hypertrophy (BPH), finding the evidence persuasively weighs against any relationship to service or service-connected disabilities.
- Denied
The Board denied the veteran's claims for service connection for degenerative changes of the cervical spine and migraines (claimed as headaches) as secondary to a degenerative change in the cervical spine.
- Remanded (sent back)
The claim for an increased rating for the service-connected cervical spine disability is remanded to correct a duty to assist error that occurred prior to the May 2022 rating decision on appeal.
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