The Veteran's claim for service connection for a bilateral eye condition is reopened, but the remand order requires an addendum medical opinion to address whether his eye conditions are secondary to his service-connected cervical spine injury.
The deciding factor: The VA examiner did not adequately address whether the Veteran’s eye disabilities were aggravated by his service-connected neck disability.
- Claimed conditions
- Bilateral eye condition
- How they argued it
- Secondary to another service-connected condition
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- May 14, 2020
- Citation
- 20034009
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 20034009.
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.
- Denied
The Board has denied service connection for major depressive disorder, right hernia, bilateral eye condition, stomach condition, bilateral foot condition, and diabetes mellitus as there is no evidence to support a causal relationship between these conditions and the Veteran's military service.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board has denied service connection for various conditions, including peripheral neuropathy of the lower extremities and upper extremity, bilateral kidney condition, right shoulder condition, lower back condition, anxiety, bilateral foot condition, right knee condition, diabetes mellitus, type II, headaches, gum condition, hypertension, blood disorder, and tinnitus. The case is remanded for further examination regarding a left ankle condition.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board has remanded the Veteran's claims due to insufficient medical opinions and potential TERA exposure. The appeals for service connection are not resolved.
- Denied
The Board has denied the Veteran's claim for service connection for a bilateral eye condition, finding that there is no evidence linking his current eye disability to his active service or any in-service exposures.
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