The Board denied the Veteran's claims for compensation under 38 U.S.C. § 1151 due to a right retinal detachment, finding that there was no evidence linking the surgery or treatment to the detached retina.
The deciding factor: The weight of evidence did not support a finding that the right retinal detachment was caused by either the March 2008 cataract surgery at VA medical center or the three fee-basis surgeries performed in 2010 by Dr. A., who was a VA employee.
- Claimed conditions
- Right retinal detachment
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating
- Not verified here — check the original decision
- Decision date
- February 3, 2021
- Citation
- 21006295
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 21006295.
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: Denied
The Veteran's right retinal detachment is not considered to be caused by VA medical care, and the Board finds that there was no fault on the part of VA in providing the treatment. The event causing the disability (retinal detachment) was reasonably foreseeable.
- Whole decision: Remanded (sent back)
The Veteran's right retinal detachment is being remanded for further development to determine if the VA surgery and post-operative care caused his condition, and whether Dr. A.A.'s surgeries at Barnes-Jewish Hospital were performed as a VA employee.
- Whole decision: Denied
The Board denied the veteran's claims for increased ratings for his service-connected lumbar myositis, psychoneurosis and conversion hysteria, residuals of shrapnel wounds of the left thigh and pelvis with retained foreign bodies and scars, and residuals of shell fragment wounds of the right thigh and left leg. The veteran was also denied entitlement to a total disability rating based on individual unemployability due to service-connected disabilities.
- Whole decision: Denied
The Board denied the Veteran's claim for an initial evaluation in excess of 10 percent for his service-connected coronary artery disease, finding that the evidence did not support a higher rating based on the severity of his condition.
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