The Veteran's claim for service connection for bilateral eye macular degeneration is denied as there is no evidence of herbicide exposure in Vietnam and the condition was not diagnosed until many years after service.,The Veteran's claim for service connection for spontaneous pneumothorax, left (now claimed as lung collapsed, left and pleural abrasions) is denied due to lack of credible evidence linking the condition to his military service.,The Veteran's claim for service connection for spontaneous pneumothorax, right (now claimed as lung collapsed, right and pleural abrasions) is denied because there was no herbicide exposure in Vietnam and the condition was not diagnosed until many years after service.
The deciding factor: There is no credible evidence linking the Veteran's current diagnoses of bilateral eye macular degeneration or spontaneous pneumothorax to his military service, including any potential herbicide exposure.,The Veteran did not have confirmed service in Vietnam and there was insufficient information to verify his claims of herbicide exposure. The condition was first diagnosed many years after service.,There is no credible evidence linking the Veteran's current diagnoses of spontaneous pneumothorax (collapsed lungs and pleural abrasions) to his military service, including any potential herbicide exposure.
- Claimed conditions
- bilateral eye macular degeneration, spontaneous pneumothorax (collapsed lungs and pleural abrasions)
- How they argued it
- Not specified
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating
- Not verified here — check the original decision
- Decision date
- August 28, 2019
- Citation
- 19166725
Veterans Law Judge
Decisions by this judge: 1,454 · Granted: 23% (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 19166725.
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: Remanded (sent back)
The Board has denied service connection for bilateral eye cataracts and macular degeneration, but has remanded the issue of service connection for bilateral eye glaucoma.
- Whole decision: Remanded (sent back)
The Board has determined that additional development is needed to determine the nature and etiology of the Veteran's right eye glaucoma and bilateral eye macular degeneration, including whether they are related to his service-connected left eye glaucoma.
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