The Board has determined that the Veteran does not have a current bilateral eye disability (temporary blindness) related to service, and his other claimed disabilities are either not supported by evidence of record or do not meet the criteria for service connection.
The deciding factor: There is no medical evidence linking the Veteran's current eye problems to an in-service episode of temporary blindness. The Board finds that the preponderance of the evidence does not support a finding that any of the Veteran's claimed disabilities are related to his military service, including Agent Orange exposure.
- Claimed conditions
- Bilateral Eye Disability (Temporary Blindness), Bilateral Hearing Loss, Skin Disability, Asthma, Blood Clot(s) of the Lungs, Sleep Apnea, Heart Disability (Atrial Fibrillation), Blood Clot(s) of the Legs, Hyperthyroidism, Right Upper Extremity Peripheral Neuropathy, Left Upper Extremity Peripheral Neuropathy, Hypertension
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- November 17, 2017
- Citation
- 1752855
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 1752855.
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.
- Granted
The Veteran's bilateral hearing loss is granted as service-connected. The claims for alcohol abuse and psychiatric disorder are remanded for additional development, including a VA examination to determine the nature and etiology of these conditions.
- Denied
The Board denied the claim of service connection for hypertension, finding that it did not manifest during service and is not causally related to the Veteran's exposure to herbicides or service.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board has decided to remand the case due to a need for a new VA examination to assess the current severity of the Veteran's bilateral hearing loss. The issue remains under direct service connection theory.
- Denied
The Board denied the Veteran's claim for service connection for hypertension, finding that there was no evidence of a nexus between his current condition and active duty service or herbicide exposure.
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