What to expect? Why are these examinations are compulsory in Austria?
MKP-I: this is the first examination that is carried out around the 1st birthday (10th-14th months of age).
MKP-II: this is the second examination that that is carried out around the 2nd birthday (22nd-26th months of age)
Visual acuity (eyesight) and three-dimensional vision develop during the first 2 years. Refractive problems (need of glasses), strabismus, micro-strabismus, amblyopia or unilateral eye disease should be detected in this time window. Should these eye problems not be detected, visual acuity and three-dimensional vision may not develop normally. If these eye problems are discovered only at school age, they can -in most cases- only be partially reversed.
The characteristic LEA symbols (house, apple, square and circle) were developed by the Finnish ophthalmologist Prof. Lea Hyvärinen and allow an age-appropriate performance of the eye test for children who cannot yet read numbers and letters. In order for your child to be able to carry out the LEA test in a relaxed manner, please print out the symbols for practicing at home so that your child can recognize and/or name these symbols.
To practice, download the LEA eye test here:
