The Board has remanded the case due to insufficient examination and failure to comply with previous remand directives. The Veteran's eye condition is being reviewed again for service connection.
The deciding factor: The VA examiner did not provide a sufficient opinion regarding whether the Veteran's current eye disabilities are related to his military service, specifically his exposure to welding, cutting torch use, and mechanical work, or an in-service brain concussion.
- Claimed conditions
- Eye condition, Dry eye syndrome, Cataracts
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- October 4, 2021
- Citation
- 21061623
Veterans Law Judge
Decisions by this judge: 2,242 · Granted: 24% (granted or partly granted, in the vetted 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. Look up the original decision on VA.gov (opens in a new tab) using citation 21061623.
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.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board has determined that additional medical opinions are needed to address the nature and etiology of the Veteran's primary open angle glaucoma with cataracts, as well as a determination of whether he has a current diagnosis of bilateral hearing loss for VA compensation purposes. The case is being remanded to allow for these determinations.
- Granted
The Veteran's post-operative cataracts with pseudophakia and vitreous degeneration are rated at 50 percent, effective from the date of the August 2024 rating decision. The separate rating for dry eye syndrome is also granted.
- Granted
The Veteran's acquired psychiatric disorder, including insomnia, is granted. The respiratory and eye conditions are remanded for further evaluation.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board has decided to remand the case due to insufficient medical opinions regarding whether the Veteran's current eye disabilities are related to service or preexisted with no superimposed injury during service. The VA must obtain a supplemental opinion from an appropriately qualified examiner.
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