The Board has decided to remand the case due to insufficient medical opinion regarding whether the Veteran's light sensitivity is related to his service, as it may be separate from his service-connected migraine headaches and pinguecula.
The deciding factor: The examiner needs to provide an opinion on whether the Veteran’s light sensitivity is caused by or related to his active service, including any possible connection to his service-connected conditions.
- Claimed conditions
- light sensitivity, photophobia, pterygium, pinguecula
- How they argued it
- Not specified
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- January 16, 2020
- Citation
- 20003467
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.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board remands the claim for service connection of photophobia to obtain a new VA opinion that adequately addresses its etiology, including whether it is related to the Veteran's active duty or secondary to his service-connected psychiatric condition.
- Denied
The Board denied the Veteran's claim for an initial compensable evaluation for pinguecula as there was no evidence of scar or disfigurement with one characteristic of disfigurement.
- Partly granted
The Board granted an initial 50 percent evaluation for service-connected cluster headaches and denied service connection for hearing loss, while granting service connection for a right lateral collateral ligament sprain as secondary to the left ankle disability and obstructive sleep apnea as secondary to PTSD.
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This is general information, not legal advice. For advice about your own situation, talk to a VA-accredited representative — many help for free.