Whether your dry eyes are the result of a service-related injury or other condition, you’ll want to know more about the dry eyes VA rating. Read this post to better understand what can cause dry eyes and how it may be related to your military service.
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Your eyes seem like they water nonstop, but they’re still itchy, red, and painful. At times, your vision is blurry, and you aren’t sure why. You may be suffering from dry eye syndrome, even if your eyes seem wet. If this condition is related to your military service, you may be eligible to receive VA disability benefits for dry eyes.
In this article about the dry eyes VA rating:
What causes dry eyes?
To be comfortable, your eyes have to be lubricated with tears. When your eyes aren’t producing tears to keep them moist, you experience dry eyes or dry eye syndrome. This condition can be itchy and irritating. It also can cause pain and vision issues.
Ironically, your eyes may water when they’re dry, but these tears don’t help ease the problem.
Causes of dry eyes include:
- Aging
- Wind, smoke, and weather
- Allergies
- Diabetes
- Injury
- Diseases like Parkinson’s, lupus, or rheumatoid arthritis
Veterans may experience dry eyes for any of the reasons above, some of which may result from exposure to environmental factors like high altitude, strong winds, or air pollution during military service.
Veterans also may experience dry eyes as a result of a mental health disorder like post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) or depression. This symptom often begins while veterans are overseas during service and continues when they return home, according to one study.
Research also found a connection between dry eyes and Gulf War Syndrome because of pesticides used on uniforms and pyridostigmine bromide (PB) pills that were prescribed to protect against the acute effects of nerve agents. Dry eye syndrome is also associated with insomnia.
Dry eyes VA rating
Dry eye syndrome doesn’t have its own diagnostic code. Instead, the VA always rates dry eye syndrome analogously, which means it’s rated based on the condition that most closely matches the veteran’s symptoms.
For example, the VA may rate dry eyes using diagnostic code 6025 for disorders of the lacrimal apparatus, which are disorders that affect the tear ducts. Other times, dry eyes may be rated under diagnostic code 6018 for chronic conjunctivitis. If your dry eyes are the result of an injury, they’re rated under diagnostic code 6009 for an unhealed eye injury.
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Dry eye syndrome as a secondary condition
As described above, dry eye syndrome can be caused by a myriad of service-related conditions. That means dry eyes may be rated as a secondary condition for VA disability purposes.
A secondary service connection allows you to receive a VA disability rating for any health condition that is medically related to a service-connected condition.
Let’s say you receive VA disability benefits for PTSD and then develop dry eye syndrome as a result of that mental health disorder. That means the eye condition is secondary to PTSD and also can be connected to your military service. You should receive VA disability benefits for both, as long as the benefits aren’t more than 100%.
TDIU for dry eye syndrome
A veteran can be awarded total disability based on individual unemployability (TDIU) benefits if they can’t maintain substantially gainful employment due to their service-connected conditions.
While dry eye syndrome alone is unlikely to cause an inability to work, the syndrome coupled with other conditions may.
For example, veterans with Parkinson’s disease may find it impossible to work because of difficulties standing and walking. Dry, itchy eyes and impaired vision caused by Parkinson’s could make those symptoms even more difficult.
TDIU pays at the same level as a 100% disability rating, even when the veteran’s combined rating is below 100%.
Veterans will typically be eligible for TDIU if they have:
- At least one service-connected disability rated at 60% or more disabling OR
- Two or more service-connected disabilities with at least one rated at 40% or more disabling and a combined rating of 70% or more
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How Woods and Woods can help
Woods and Woods has worked with thousands of veterans nationwide to get them the VA benefits they deserve. Call us for a free case evaluation to find out how we can help. If we take your case, you only pay us a percentage of your back pay if we win.
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FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS
Although dry eye syndrome does not have its own diagnostic code, the VA will rate dry eye syndrome analogously, which means it’s rated based on the condition that most closely matches the veteran’s symptoms.
If you have service-connected dry eye syndrome affecting both eyes, the VA may assign a rating of 20% for bilateral dry eye syndrome using diagnostic code 6025 for disorders of the lacrimal apparatus.
Neil Woods
VA disability attorney
Woods & Woods
Neil Woods is the firm’s owner and president. He received his law degree from Western Michigan University.
