What did you say? Did you see that?
According to the National Institute on Deafness and Other Communication Disorders, about 15% of American adults (37.5 million) aged 18 and over report some trouble hearing.
Hearing loss can make it difficult to understand and follow conversations, enjoy music, and hear the doorbell or telephone. It can also make it hard to monitor one's own voice volume.
Vision impairment is also common, affecting more than 3 million Americans. Low vision may be caused by a diminished central visual acuity, or by a limited field of view/reduce peripheral sight. Patients with low vision may have difficulty reading print even when wearing corrective lenses and may find everyday tasks such as shopping and cooking challenging. Furthermore, they may not be allowed to drive.
How apps may help the eyes
There are a number of apps that can help people with vision impairments manage their everyday lives. For example, an app may connect blind and low-vision individuals with volunteer helpers from around the world who can assist them with tasks via video calls. It may also offer a library of how-to videos with voice explanations on topics such as cooking, personal care, and home repair.
Other apps use the camera on a person's smartphone to identify objects and read text aloud. They can provide magnified images of text, read aloud text on the screen, and identify colors and contrast. Some may also describe people's emotions, scan barcodes to provide product information, and more.
These are just a few examples of how mobile technology can help make life easier for those with vision impairment.
Other apps are aimed at the healthy eyes and work by protecting the eyes, for example from blue light or eye strain caused by prolonged work on computer screens.
How apps may help hearing impairment
There are a number of apps available that can help people with hearing impairment in their daily lives. For example, there are apps that can provide real time captioning of conversations, amplify sound, and identify sounds around the user.
For patients with hearing aids, connected apps allow for more precise adjustments of hearing aids, or adjustments related to specific noise situations.
Other disability
Finally, there are a number of general assistive technology apps that can be useful for people with any type of disability. These apps will provide information about accessibility features in the area, allow users to control their environment through a smart device, and much more.
Some of the best apps for hearing and sight impairment
Now, let's take a look at our suggestions.
AudioCardio is a sound therapy app that is clinically proven to help maintain, protect and strengthen hearing. It is fast and easy to use, and provides a personalized sound therapy for each ear. The app is also great for people with tinnitus, as it can provide relief from the condition.
The Oto app may help people suffering from hearing impairment by teaching them how to take control of their ringing ears using clinically proven techniques. The app uses cognitive behavioural therapy (CBT) which has been clinically proven in numerous scientific studies and is recommended by doctors and audiologists internationally. Oto combines CBT with other effective therapies, such as targeted mindfulness and relaxation therapy.
Blue Light Filter - Eye Care app's filter adjusts the screen color temperature to reduce the harmful effect of blue light and helps your eyes to relax, making it easier for you to fall asleep. The app is easy to use with just one tap to turn on or off, and you can adjust the intensity and darkness of the filter.
Eyes recovery workout contains exercises that may help to relax eyes and to restore a tired vision. The exercises are easy to follow and only take a few minutes to complete.
GamE-blyopia is perfect for those who are looking for a fun and high-quality way to exercise their eyes, including games to improve a lazy eye. With GamE-blyopia, the user can enjoy a variety of games that are designed to improve its vision.
MyEyeGym is an orthoptic eye exercise app developed by the Singapore National Eye Centre (SNEC) that can improve good eye alignment and restore and maintain 3D vision (stereopsis)/ depth perception. The app is suitable for both adults and children, and offers various levels of difficulty to encourage improvement. MyEyeGym is fun, engaging, stimulating and interactive.
Conclusion
Hearing and sight impairments can make everyday tasks difficult for people affected by them. Happily, mobile technology has created a number of applications that can help people with these difficulties in a number of ways.
Your health care professional can help you choose
Feeling confident is important. Get all the essential information about health apps by talking to your healthcare professional.
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