The Board has granted service connection for dry eye syndrome and denied service connection for bilateral cataracts. The Veteran's right long finger disability is rated at 10 percent, while his right ring finger disability does not warrant a compensable rating. The Veteran's hearing loss is currently rated as 10 percent disabling as of March 24, 2017.
The deciding factor: The Board found that the evidence was in equipoise for service connection for dry eye syndrome and denied it for bilateral cataracts due to lack of a nexus. The Veteran's right long finger disability is rated at 10 percent under Diagnostic Code 5229, while his right ring finger disability does not warrant a compensable rating as there is no limitation of motion. For the hearing loss, the Board found that the evidence was in equipoise and granted an initial 10 percent rating effective March 24, 2017.
- Claimed conditions
- dry eye syndrome, bilateral cataracts
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- 10%
- Decision date
- June 13, 2019
- Citation
- 19146218
Veterans Law Judge
Decisions by this judge: 2,316 · Granted: 43% (granted or partly granted, in the vetted 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. Look up the original decision on VA.gov (opens in a new tab) using citation 19146218.
What this means for you
A grant means the Board agreed the veteran was entitled to the benefit. Decisions like this show the kind of evidence and arguments that tend to succeed for claims like it.
What you can do next
Related decisions
Other Board decisions on a similar condition or argued the same way.
- Dismissed
The Board dismissed the appeal of entitlement to service connection for dry eye syndrome claimed as visual impairment, including blurry vision, blindness, double vision due to procedural error. The Veteran's claim for service connection for sleep apnea was denied because there is no evidence of a current diagnosis of sleep apnea.
- Granted
The Veteran's Special Monthly Compensation (SMC) based on the need for regular Aid and Attendance is granted as of April 25, 2024.,For diabetes mellitus, a rating in excess of 20 percent is denied.
- Partly granted
The Veteran's claim for an initial compensable rating for OSA is denied as his sleep apnea has not been manifested by persistent daytime hypersomnolence or required use of a breathing assistance device such as a CPAP machine.,The Veteran's claims for service connection for dry eye syndrome and an increased rating for left knee disability are remanded due to procedural errors in the adjudication process.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board has decided to remand the case due to insufficient evidence regarding the etiology of the Veteran's dry eye syndrome and conjunctivitis, including any potential service connection or toxic exposure.
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