The Board has remanded the case due to insufficient evidence regarding the etiology of the Veteran's eye disabilities, specifically whether they are related to service exposure. The VA examiner is requested to provide an addendum opinion addressing these issues.
The deciding factor: The existing evidence does not support a finding that the Veteran’s eye disability is at least as likely as not related to service.
- Claimed conditions
- nuclear sclerotic cataracts, bilateral posterior vitreous detachments, bilateral pingueculae, dry eye syndrome, peripheral retinal degeneration
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- August 15, 2019
- Citation
- 19162860
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 19162860.
What this means for you
A remand is not a loss. The Board sent the case back for more development — often a new exam or missing records — before making a final decision. Many remands later end in a grant, and the decision spells out exactly what the Board wanted to see.
What you can do next
Related decisions
Other Board decisions on a similar condition or argued the same way.
- Granted
The Board granted service connection for left eye conjunctival squamous cell carcinoma and remanded the issue of service connection for an eye disability other than left eye conjunctival squamous cell carcinoma, to include dry eye syndrome and pinguecula.
- Partly granted
The Board dismissed the appeal for service connection for a mental health condition and denied service connection for an eye condition. The claims for autoimmune limbic encephalitis with non-paraneoplastic limbic encephalitis (NPLE) with GAD65 antibodies and dystonia and dystonic tremor were remanded.
- Dismissed
The Veteran has withdrawn the appeal for service connection and higher ratings, requesting to submit supplemental claims instead.
- Denied
The Board denied service connection for obstructive sleep apnea, bilateral cataracts, dry eye syndrome, allergic conjunctivitis, valvular heart disease, cardiomyopathy, and atrial fibrillation as the evidence did not support a finding that these conditions were incurred in or caused by an in-service event.
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