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Se l'udito si affievolisce, si deve usare un dispositivo.

Se l'udito si affievolisce, si deve usare un dispositivo.
If hearing weakens, one must use a device.
From Lesson 325:Gradual actions (andare + gerundio)·Italian

Questions & Answers about Se l'udito si affievolisce, si deve usare un dispositivo.

How would we change this sentence to emphasize that the hearing is gradually weakening, using this lesson's target grammar?
You can use the andare + present gerund structure. Since affievolirsi is reflexive, the pronoun si can go before the conjugated verb or attach to the gerund. You would write Se l'udito si va affievolendo... or Se l'udito va affievolendosi... to mean 'If hearing is gradually weakening...'.
Why is there a si before affievolisce?
It belongs to the pronominal verb affievolirsi (to weaken, to grow faint). While affievolire means to weaken something else, adding si makes it intransitive, describing a change of state happening to the subject itself (the hearing).
In si deve usare, is that also a reflexive si?
No, that is the impersonal si, which translates to the generic 'one' or 'you' in English, so si deve usare means 'one must use'. It is very common in Italian to see both the reflexive si and the impersonal si used in the same sentence with completely different functions.
With the modal verb dovere, could we attach the impersonal si to the end of the infinitive, like deve usarsi?
No. While reflexive pronouns can attach to the infinitive after a modal verb (for example, lui deve lavarsi), the impersonal si must always be placed before the conjugated modal verb, making si deve usare the only correct option here.

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