The Board has determined that the Veteran's right eye blindness was caused by carelessness, negligence, lack of proper skill on the part of the surgical resident during cataract surgery at a VA facility. The event was not reasonably foreseeable.
The deciding factor: The retrobulbar injection during cataract surgery performed by an inexperienced ophthalmological resident led to ischemic optic nerve damage resulting in blindness, which was not expected and unforeseeable.
- Claimed conditions
- Right eye blindness
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- August 18, 2023
- Citation
- 23045947
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 23045947.
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.
- Partly granted
The Board granted an initial rating of 80 percent for bilateral primary open-angle glaucoma, severe stage, unspecified pterygium, and right eye blindness, and a 60 percent rating for GERD.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board has remanded the Veteran's claims for entitlement to a disability rating in excess of 30 percent for right eye blindness, service connection for right eye blindness prior to January 13, 2014, and an effective date prior to January 13, 2014 for special monthly compensation (SMC) based on loss of use. The claims will be remanded for further review.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board has determined that additional development is needed to determine the cause of the Veteran's right eye blindness and whether it was caused by VA carelessness, negligence or similar instance of fault. The case will be remanded for further action.
- Denied
The Veteran's right eye blindness, resulting from a failed VA right eye cataract extraction surgery in July 2008, was not proximately caused by or the result of VA carelessness, negligence, lack of proper skill, error in judgment or similar instance of fault on the part of VA. The Board denied compensation under 38 U.S.C. § 1151 for right eye blindness.
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