The Board remands the issues of entitlement to a separate and compensable disability rating for bilateral diabetic retinopathy, pseudophakia of the right eye, and cataract of the left eye prior to March 24, 2022, and entitlement to a disability rating in excess of 10 percent from that date.
The deciding factor: The Board remands the case for an addendum opinion regarding the etiology of the Veteran's visual field defects due to the lack of clarity on the extent to which the service-connected eye conditions are responsible for his documented visual field defects.
- Claimed conditions
- bilateral diabetic retinopathy, pseudophakia of the right eye, cataract of the left eye
- How they argued it
- Not specified
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- January 9, 2023
- Citation
- 23001157
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 remands the claims for service connection for diabetes mellitus, type II (DMII), hypertension, peripheral vascular disease, bilateral diabetic retinopathy, and bilateral upper and lower diabetic peripheral neuropathy due to insufficient evidence regarding toxic exposures during military service.
- Denied
The Board denied the Veteran's claim for a compensable rating for his bilateral diabetic retinopathy based on visual acuity findings that did not meet the criteria for a compensable rating.
- Partly granted
The Board granted initial ratings of 40 percent for lumbosacral strain and 20 percent for right and left knee strains, while denying increased ratings for other conditions.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board remanded the veteran's claims for service connection of vision disorders and total disability rating due to individual unemployability (TDIU). The Board found that further medical opinions are needed to adequately address the veteran's conditions.
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