The Veteran's right eye vision loss is deemed a qualifying additional disability resulting from VA medical treatment, and the cause of this disability was an event not reasonably foreseeable. Therefore, the Veteran is entitled to compensation under 38 U.S.C. § 1151 for his right eye vision loss.
The deciding factor: The right eye vision loss resulted from complications following cataract extraction with anterior vitrectomy and intraocular lens implantation at a VA medical center, which caused retinal detachment and subsequent vision loss. The cause of the disability was an unforeseeable event (retinal detachment), satisfying the requirements for compensation under 38 U.S.C. § 1151.
- Claimed conditions
- Right eye vision loss, Right eye optic atrophy, Pseudophakia, Ptosis, Corneal edema, Retinal scarring secondary to laser retinal repair
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- October 14, 2022
- Citation
- A22020829
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 A22020829.
What this means for you
A grant means the Board agreed the veteran was entitled to the benefit. Decisions like this show the kind of evidence and arguments that tend to succeed for claims like it.
What you can do next
Related decisions
Other Board decisions on a similar condition or argued the same way.
- Granted
The Veteran's limitations in performing activities of daily living are consistent with being unable to sustain himself in the community, warranting Tier 2 benefits under the PCAFC program.
- Denied
The Board denied increased ratings for peripheral neuropathy and remanded claims related to eye conditions and TDIU.
- Partly granted
The Board granted service connection for bilateral hearing loss and type 2 diabetes mellitus, while denying service connection for shin splints, left lower extremity, an acquired psychiatric disorder, to include PTSD, and right eye vision loss.
- Denied
The Board denied the Veteran's request to revise a January 2016 rating decision that assigned an 80 percent disability rating for bilateral macular degeneration with pseudophakia, finding no clear and unmistakable error (CUE). The effective date remains December 12, 2014.
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