The Veteran's initial claim for a higher rating for his service-connected keratoconus of the left eye was denied by the Board. The Veteran is currently rated at 30 percent, which reflects the severity of his condition as per VA disability evaluation criteria.
The deciding factor: The Veteran's visual acuity in the affected eye is consistently below the threshold required for a higher rating under the applicable VA rating schedule.
- Claimed conditions
- keratoconus
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- 30%
- Decision date
- October 25, 2010
- Citation
- 1040037
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 1040037.
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 the Veteran's appeal for a higher disability rating for keratoconus, as the evidence did not support a rating higher than 40 percent.
- Dismissed
The appeal for a compensable rating for keratoconus was dismissed due to the untimely filing of the notice of disagreement.
- Granted
The Board granted service connection for keratoconus, resolving reasonable doubt in favor of the Veteran and finding that it is at least as likely as not related to in-service environmental exposures.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board remands the claim for an additional VA examination to address whether the Veteran's eye condition was due to carelessness, negligence, lack of proper skill, error in judgment, or a similar instance of fault on the part of VA.
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