美国批准苹果AirPods用作助听器

The Americangovernment has approved the use of Apple AirPods as hearing aids.

The United StatesFood and Drug Administration (FDA) recently announced it had approved newhearing aid software created for some AirPods devices. An Apple softwarerelease this week launched the system on the devices.

Apple said itsAirPods Pro 2 are equipped with the software. The company added that the designwill permit users to turn their AirPods into a medical-strength hearing aiddevice.

The system aimsto increase specific sounds in real-time, including parts of speech andelements within a users' environment. Apple says another goal of its softwarerelease is to get more people to try hearing aids.

An estimated 30million Americans – about 1 in 8 Americans over the age of 12 — have hearingloss in both ears. Millions could see improvements from hearing aids. But mosthave never tried them, the National Institute on Deafness and OtherCommunication Disorders says.

Many others havetried assistive devices, but choose not to use them. The reasons include highcost, poor quality, poor fit, how the devices look or other reasons. But inrecent years, there has been a push in the U.S. to get more people to try them.

In 2022, federalrules changed to permit some kinds of hearing aids to be sold without adoctor's order, or prescription. Such moves aimed to bring better and lesscostly models to patients.

Thehighest-quality hearing aids can cost from $1,000 to $2,500, or even more. Butsome over-the-counter models sell for between $400 and $500, said ElizabethStangl, a hearing expert at the University of Iowa. She spoke to The AssociatedPress.

Stangl said someof the less costly models are only effective at raising sound levels. But theylack the personal settings and noise blocking tools that can make hearing aidsmost helpful. AirPods cost $249 on Apple's website, and sometimes less from othersellers.

The launch of thesoftware is part of a series of health tools Apple has released over the years.Most of them were built for the Apple Watch. These include several tools forchecking heart and oxygen levels.

Apple's softwarerelease also includes built-in tests to help users find out if they havehearing loss and, if so, how severe it is. Those who do have hearing loss canthen set specific amplification levels.

Experts say thereare other, similar headphone devices on the market that could also be used toincrease sound levels for people with hearing loss. But many agree the AirPodsaddition is a good one, largely because of the way it could help normalize hearingaids for the public.

Barbara Kelley isthe director of the Hearing Loss Association of America. She told the AP thatAirPods are considered “mainstream” and already widely used. This could getpeople to try the devices if they have been resistant to the look oftraditional hearing aids.

Kelley noted thatmany health conditions have been linked to hearing loss. These includedepression, dementia and greater risk of falls. The majority of people with hearingloss are over age 60, but it can affect younger people as well, including thosewho suffered a hearing damaging event.

“Everything wedo, all our relationships, whether it's personal or in our work life, involvehearing conversation,” Kelley said. “We're finding now that the sooner thatpeople can pay attention to their hearing health, the better.”

The University ofIowa's Stangl noted the AirPods solution does come with possible issues somepeople may not like. Fit and comfort during long use might be one of these. Andwhile other hearing aids are built to last through a whole day or more, she saidthe battery life of the AirPods does not permit for that. She also said thatwearing AirPods might send a message to others that the person does not want tobe disturbed or spoken to.

“But we're hopingthat more people will try it and realize, ‘Yeah, these do help,'” Stangl said.

 美国政府批准将苹果AirPods用作助听器。
美国食品药品监督管理局（FDA）最近宣布，已批准为某些AirPods设备创建的新助听器软件。本周，苹果发布了一款软件更新，在这些设备上推出了该系统。
苹果表示，其AirPods Pro 2配备了该软件。该公司还提到，这一设计将允许用户将他们的AirPods转变为医疗级别的助听器设备。
该系统旨在实时增强特定的声音，包括语音的某些部分以及用户环境中的元素。苹果表示，其软件发布的另一个目标是让更多人尝试使用助听器。
据估计，约有3000万美国人——大约每8个12岁以上的美国人中就有1人——双耳听力受损。数以百万计的人可能会从助听器中受益。但大多数人都从未尝试过它们，国家聋哑和其他交流障碍研究所如是说。
许多人尝试过辅助设备，但选择不使用。原因包括高昂的成本、质量差、佩戴不适、外观或其他因素。但在近年来，美国一直在推动更多人尝试使用这些设备。
2022年，联邦规则改变，允许某些类型的助听器无需医生处方即可销售。这样的举措旨在为患者提供更好且更实惠的型号。
最高质量的助听器可能要花费1000到2500美元，甚至更高。但是，一些柜台销售的模型售价在400到500美元之间，爱荷华大学的听力专家伊丽莎白·斯坦格尔告诉美联社。
斯坦格尔说，一些成本较低的模型只能有效提高音量。但它们缺乏使助听器最有效的个性化设置和噪音阻隔工具。AirPods在苹果官网上的售价为249美元，有时从其他卖家处购买价格更低。

此次软件的推出是苹果多年来发布的一系列健康工具的一部分。其中大部分工具是为Apple Watch设计的，包括几个用于检查心率和血氧水平的工具。
苹果此次软件更新还包括内置测试，帮助用户了解他们是否有听力损失，如果有，严重程度如何。那些有听力损失的人可以随后设置特定的放大级别。
专家表示，市场上还有其他类似耳机设备，也可以用来为听力受损的人增加音量。但许多人认为，AirPods的这一功能是一个很好的补充，主要是因为它可以帮助公众习惯助听器的存在。
美国听力损失协会的主任芭芭拉·凯利告诉美联社，AirPods被认为是“主流”产品，已经广泛使用。这可能会促使那些对传统助听器外观有所抵触的人尝试这些设备。
凯利指出，许多健康状况都与听力损失有关联。这些包括抑郁症、痴呆症和跌倒的风险增加。大多数听力受损的人年龄在60岁以上，但也会影响年轻人，包括那些经历过听力损伤事件的人。
“我们所做的一切，无论是个人关系还是工作生活中的关系，都涉及到听取对话。”凯利说，“我们现在发现，人们越早关注自己的听力健康，效果越好。”
爱荷华大学的斯坦格尔提到，AirPods解决方案确实伴随着一些可能的问题，有些人可能不喜欢这些问题。长时间使用的贴合度和舒适度可能是其中之一。她还说，虽然其他助听器设计可以持续一整天或更长时间，但AirPods的电池寿命并不允许这样做。她还提到，佩戴AirPods可能会向他人传达出这个人不想被打扰或交谈的信息。
“但我们希望更多的人会尝试并意识到，‘是的，这些确实有帮助,’” 斯坦格尔说。