The Board denied compensation under 38 U.S.C. § 1151 for additional left eye disabilities resulting from VA medical and surgical treatment from November 2007 to August 2008, finding that the Veteran's conditions were not caused by or a result of VA care.
The deciding factor: The Board found that the Veteran’s pre-existing conditions (diabetes mellitus) caused his left eye disabilities, and that VA did not cause these conditions through its treatment. The additional disability was reasonably foreseeable as part of standard diabetic retinopathy management.
- Claimed conditions
- Left eye retinal detachment, Macular edema, Proliferative diabetic retinopathy, Epiretinal membrane, Diabetic macular edema, Vitreous floaters
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating
- Not verified here — check the original decision
- Decision date
- January 29, 2019
- Citation
- 19106454
Veterans Law Judge
Decisions by this judge: 2,549 · 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. Read the original VA decision (opens in a new tab) using citation 19106454.
What this means for you
A final Board denial may be appealed to the U.S. Court of Appeals for Veterans Claims, generally within 120 days of the Board mailing date. A Supplemental Claim with new and relevant evidence is a separate option. Another Higher-Level Review of the Board decision is not available. Check your own notice: this historical decision does not set your deadline.
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: Granted
The Veteran's vitreous floaters are granted service connection. The Veteran's acquired psychiatric disorder is denied a rating in excess of 50 percent prior to June 7, 2023 and thereafter.
- Whole decision: Granted
The Veteran's cervical strain and vitreous floaters have been granted service connection as they are directly related to his military service.
- Whole decision: Denied
The Board denied the veteran's claims for increased ratings and earlier effective dates, as the evidence did not support a higher rating or an earlier effective date.
- Whole decision: Remanded (sent back)
The Board has remanded the claims for an acquired psychiatric disorder due to a lack of definitive opinion regarding its onset in service. The other two conditions (hypertension and macular edema) have been denied as not related to service.
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