Loneliness as a Public Health Issue: The Impact of Loneliness on Health Care Utilization Among Older Adults
Top Cited Papers
- 1 May 2015
- journal article
- Published by American Public Health Association in American Journal of Public Health
- Vol. 105 (5), 1013-1019
- https://doi.org/10.2105/ajph.2014.302427
Abstract
We aimed to determine whether loneliness is associated with higher health care utilization among older adults in the United States. We used panel data from the Health and Retirement Study (2008 and 2012) to examine the long-term impact of loneliness on health care use. The sample was limited to community-dwelling persons in the United States aged 60 years and older. We used negative binomial regression models to determine the impact of loneliness on physician visits and hospitalizations. Under 2 definitions of loneliness, we found that a sizable proportion of those aged 60 years and older in the United States reported loneliness. Regression results showed that chronic loneliness (those lonely both in 2008 and 4 years later) was significantly and positively associated with physician visits (β = 0.075, SE = 0.034). Loneliness was not significantly associated with hospitalizations. Loneliness is a significant public health concern among elders. In addition to easing a potential source of suffering, the identification and targeting of interventions for lonely elders may significantly decrease physician visits and health care costs.Keywords
This publication has 30 references indexed in Scilit:
- Patterns of Older Americans’ Health Care Utilization Over TimeAmerican Journal of Public Health, 2013
- Social isolation, loneliness, and all-cause mortality in older men and womenProceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, 2013
- Late-Life Social Activity and Cognitive Decline in Old AgeJournal of the International Neuropsychological Society, 2011
- Social Relationships and Mortality Risk: A Meta-analytic ReviewPLoS Medicine, 2010
- Loneliness predicts increased blood pressure: 5-year cross-lagged analyses in middle-aged and older adults.Psychology and Aging, 2010
- Older adult loneliness: myths and realitiesEuropean Journal of Ageing, 2009
- Societal and Individual Determinants of Medical Care Utilization in the United StatesThe Milbank Quarterly, 2005
- In This IssueThe Milbank Quarterly, 2005
- A short scale for measuring loneliness in large surveys - Results from two population-based studiesResearch on Aging, 2004
- Studies of Illness in the AgedJAMA, 1963