Faculty of Social Welfare, Nihon Fukushi University, Mihama, Japan.
Center for Well-being and Society, Nihon Fukushi University, Mihama, Japan.
Geriatr Gerontol Int. 2021 Feb;21(2):209-214. doi: 10.1111/ggi.14118. Epub 2020 Dec 21.
Existing evidence links social isolation with poor health. To examine differences in the mortality risk by social isolation, and in socio-economic correlates of social isolation, we analyzed large-scale cohort studies in Japan and England.
Participants were drawn from the Japan Gerontological Evaluation Study (JAGES) and the English Longitudinal Study of Ageing (ELSA). We analyzed the 10-year mortality among 15 313 JAGES participants and 5124 ELSA respondents. Social isolation was measured by two scales, i.e., scoring the frequency of contact with close ties, and a composite measurement of social isolation risk. We calculated the population attributable fraction, and Cox regression models with multiple imputations were used to estimate hazard ratios (HRs) for mortality due to social isolation.
The proportion of those with contact frequency of less than once a month was 8.5% in JAGES and 1.3% in ELSA. Males, older people, those with poor self-rated health, and unmarried people were significantly associated with social isolation in both countries. Both scales showed that social isolation among older adults had a remarkably higher risk for premature death (less frequent contact with others in JAGES: hazard ratio [HR] = 1.18, 95% confidence interval [CI]: 1.05-1.33, in ELSA: HR = 1.27, 95% CI: 0.85-1.89; and high isolation risk score in JAGES: HR = 1.30, 95% CI: 1.12-1.50, in ELSA: HR = 2.05, 95% CI: 1.52-2.73). The population attributable fraction showed less frequent contact with close ties was attributed to about 18 000 premature deaths annually in Japan, in contrast with about 1800 in England.
Negative health impacts of social isolation were higher among older Japanese compared with those in England. Geriatr Gerontol Int 2021; 21: 209-214.
现有证据表明，社会隔离与健康状况不佳有关。为了研究社会隔离与死亡风险的差异，以及社会隔离与社会经济相关性的差异，我们分析了日本和英国的大规模队列研究。
参与者来自日本老年人评估研究（JAGES）和英国老龄化纵向研究（ELSA）。我们分析了 JAGES 研究的 15313 名参与者和 ELSA 研究的 5124 名受访者的 10 年死亡率。社会隔离通过两种量表来衡量，即评分与亲密关系的接触频率和社会隔离风险的综合测量。我们计算了人群归因分数，并使用包含多重插补的 Cox 回归模型来估计由于社会隔离导致的死亡率的危险比（HR）。
JAGES 中每月与他人接触少于一次的比例为 8.5%，ELSA 中为 1.3%。在两个国家中，男性、老年人、自我报告健康状况较差的人和未婚人士与社会隔离显著相关。两个量表都显示，老年人的社会隔离对早逝的风险显著更高（在 JAGES 中与他人接触较少的风险比[HR]为 1.18，95%置信区间[CI]为 1.05-1.33，在 ELSA 中为 HR = 1.27，95%CI：0.85-1.89；高隔离风险评分在 JAGES 中为 HR = 1.30，95%CI：1.12-1.50，在 ELSA 中为 HR = 2.05，95%CI：1.52-2.73）。人群归因分数表明，与亲密关系接触较少的情况在日本每年导致约 18000 例过早死亡，而在英国则约为 1800 例。
与英国相比，日本老年人社会隔离的健康影响更为负面。老年医学与老年病学国际 2021; 21: 209-214。
