The association of loneliness with health and social care utilisation in older adults: A systematic review

Abstract

Background and Objectives: Loneliness is proposed to be linked with increased service use. This review examined the association of loneliness and health and social care utilization (HSCU) in older adults from the general population.

Research Design and Methods: Four databases were screened for studies that examined the association of loneliness (predictor) with HSCU (outcome) in older adults (defined as the majority of sample 60 or older). Study quality was assessed with the National Institutes for Health scale for observational cohorts and cross-sectional studies.

Results: We identified 32 studies, of which 9 prospective studies were evaluated as being good or good–fair quality. Two good–fair quality studies found that loneliness at baseline was associated with subsequent admission to a residential care home. There was emerging evidence that loneliness was associated with emergency department use (n = 1) and cardiovascular disease-specific hospitalization (n = 1). Once adjusted for confounders, the highest quality studies found no association of baseline loneliness with physician utilization, outpatient service utilization, skilled nursing facility use, and planned or unplanned hospital admissions. The remaining studies were cross-sectional, or of fair to poor quality, and inadequate to reliably determine whether loneliness was associated with a subsequent change in HSCU.

Discussion and implications: There was heterogeneity in study design, measurement, and study quality. This generated an inconsistent evidence base where we cannot determine clear inferences about the relationship between loneliness and HSCU. Only one consistent finding was observed between 2 good–fair quality studies regarding care home admission. To determine clinical implications and make reliable inferences, additional good quality longitudinal research is needed.