[Testing for visual deficits by the police among road users in Germany].

Background: The Professional Association of Ophthalmologists (BVA) estimates that at least 100,000s of traffic accidents with 10,000s of injuries and fatalities are caused by known and unknown visual disorders on German roads every year. Until now, however, the police have not had the opportunity to check for potential visual disorders on the spot in cases of conspicuous driving. In a pilot project of the police with the Eye Hospital of the Hannover Medical School (MHH), the aim was for the first time to extend the existing tests of the police by adapted "car-side" vision tests.