Service connection for a heart condition (claimed as heart murmur) is denied.,Service connection for bilateral cataracts is denied.,Service connection for residuals of a right eye corneal abrasion is denied.,Service connection for a bilateral eye condition (diagnosed as pterygium, pinguecula) is denied.,The Veteran's back strain claim remains pending and will be remanded.
The deciding factor: The evidence does not support a current diagnosis of a heart condition claimed as a heart murmur or any other related disability. The March 2017 VA examination found no current heart condition.,There is no medical evidence linking the Veteran's bilateral cataracts to service, including in-service eye injuries. Cataracts are typically associated with aging rather than trauma.,The right eye corneal abrasion did not result in any residual disability as evidenced by the absence of treatment or diagnosis related to this condition post-service.,Pterygium and pinguecula were found to be more likely due to age and sun exposure, not service-related injuries. The Veteran's STRs do not show these conditions at separation.,The VA examiner opined that the back strain is less likely than not caused by an in-service motor vehicle accident, as there was no objective evidence of chronicity.
- Claimed conditions
- Heart condition (claimed as heart murmur), Bilateral cataracts, Residuals of a right eye corneal abrasion, Bilateral eye condition (diagnosed as pterygium, pinguecula), Back strain (claimed as back condition)
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- February 1, 2024
- Citation
- 24005254
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 24005254.
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Related decisions
Other Board decisions on a similar condition or argued the same way.
- Denied
The Board has determined that the Veteran's bilateral eye disability, including cataracts and a choroidal nevus affecting the left eye, is not attributable to active military service.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Veteran's appeal is remanded due to pre-decisional duty to assist errors, including inadequate VA examinations and ineffective assignment of an effective date. A new VA examination is required to assess the current severity of his service-connected bilateral dry eye syndrome and cataracts, with a focus on whether a separate compensable rating for dry eye syndrome is warranted.
- Denied
The Board denied service connection for bilateral cataracts and status-post eye surgery, finding that the conditions are not related to service or in-service exposures.
- Denied
The Board denied a rating greater than 20 percent for diabetes mellitus, type II, with bilateral cataracts and total disability based upon individual unemployability (TDIU) as the evidence did not support an increase in the Veteran's ratings or entitlement to TDIU.
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