The Veteran's photophobia does not result in active objective findings such as red, thick conjunctivae, mucous secretion; or field of vision impairment, visual acuity impairment, or incapacitating episodes. Therefore, the claim for an initial compensable rating for photophobia is denied.
The deciding factor: The evidence did not show active conjunctivitis with objective findings such as red thick conjunctivae, mucous secretion, etc., and the Veteran's vision acuity was normal bilaterally.
- Claimed conditions
- photophobia
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- November 18, 2019
- Citation
- A19002873
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 A19002873.
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.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board remands the claim for service connection of photophobia to obtain a new VA opinion that adequately addresses its etiology, including whether it is related to the Veteran's active duty or secondary to his service-connected psychiatric condition.
- Denied
The Board denied the veteran's claims for service connection and increased ratings, finding that the evidence did not support a compensable disability rating or service connection for any of the claimed conditions.
- Granted
The Board granted service connection for panic disorder/obsessive compulsive disorder, irritable bowel syndrome/functional abdominal pain syndrome/abdominal pain & bloating, gastroesophageal reflux disease (GERD), sleep apnea, photophobia, tinnitus, and tremors of the hands.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board remands the claims for service connection for bilateral knee injury, head injury, photophobia, posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD), and schizophrenia to allow VA to obtain potentially relevant Social Security Administration records.
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