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Board of Veterans' Appeals · Legacy series

Service connection for an eye disability is denied.

January 30, 2026Citation Nr. 26001416Docket 14-31 221Ava.gov source

  • eye disabilityDenied
DecisionAnalysis

Board reasoning

The Veteran's eye disability claim was evaluated against medical opinions showing age-related cataracts and questionable glaucoma rather than a service-incurred condition. A March 2024 VA medical opinion concluded the in-service blepharitis did not cause any current eye disease, and earlier examinations did not establish glaucoma. Although the August 2019 opinion suggested possible service-related factors, the Board found it inconsistent and gave it no probative weight, concluding the service connection claim is not warranted after considering the evidence of record.

Issues

  • eye disabilityDenied

Authorities

  • Jandreau v. Nicholson, 492 F.3d 1372Recognize that a layperson is not competent to diagnose etiology of eye disease.
  • Lynch v. McDonough, 21 F.4th 776 (Fed. Cir. 2021)Apply benefit-of-the-doubt considerations when evidence is in balance

Extracted with gpt-5-nano-2025-08-07. Citations are kept only when they appear in the decision text.