The Board denied the Veteran's claim of service connection for an eye disability, finding that his current keratoconus is not related to service and that there is no medical evidence linking it to service.
The deciding factor: The VA examiner provided a highly probative opinion explaining that keratitis and keratoconus are two distinct disabilities with separate causes, despite the similarities in the name. There was no medical evidence of a diagnosis of keratoconus prior to September 2009, decades after separation from service.
- Claimed conditions
- keratoconus, myopia, astigmatism
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- November 5, 2020
- Citation
- 20071543
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 20071543.
What this means for you
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What you can do next
Related decisions
Other Board decisions on a similar condition or argued the same way.
- Dismissed
The Veteran withdrew his appeals for all the listed conditions in April 2024 and March 2025, thus dismissing the appeal.
- Dismissed
The Veteran has withdrawn his appeals regarding the initial compensable disability rating for keratoconus and the initial disability rating in excess of 10 percent for migraine headaches.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board has remanded the cases of service connection for left leg scar, right leg scar, and scars on right arm due to a duty to assist error. The Veteran's claims for astigmatism, an acquired psychiatric disorder, and other scars are not granted.
- Denied
The Veteran's claim for service connection for anxiety was denied as the evidence did not support a diagnosis of an anxiety disorder.,The Veteran's claim for increased rating for depression was denied because his symptoms were consistent with those already covered by his existing service-connected disability.
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