The Board denied service connection for bilateral dry eye syndrome as the condition is not related to active service, but rather resulted from elective surgery performed during service.
The deciding factor: Dry eye syndrome developed after PRK laser vision surgery in 2013 and was a common complication of the procedure, which did not aggravate pre-existing myopia.
- Claimed conditions
- bilateral dry eye syndrome, iritis
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- April 4, 2019
- Citation
- 19125167
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.
- Partly granted
The Board granted service connection for eye conditions, an acquired psychiatric disorder, and obstructive sleep apnea as secondary to the Veteran's service-connected diabetes mellitus type II with erectile dysfunction and left eye retinopathy. However, it denied increased ratings for multiple peripheral neuropathies, hypertension, and status post tympanoplasty.
- Partly granted
The Board granted a 20 percent initial rating for bilateral dry eye syndrome and service connection for left knee strain, but denied other claims including increased ratings for right lower extremity radiculopathy, bilateral hearing loss, incomplete right bundle branch block (claimed as cardiac arrhythmia), degenerative disc disease of the thoracolumbar spine with IVDS, scarring of the left inguinal area, status post varicocele surgery, and service connection for left shoulder strain and restless leg syndrome.
- Denied
The Board denied service connection for all the conditions listed as there was no evidence of an in-service event, nor is there evidence demonstrating a nexus to service.
- Denied
The Board denied service connection for various conditions and denied increased ratings for several service-connected disabilities, as the evidence did not support a finding of current disability or aggravation related to service.
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