Department of Epidemiology and Global Health, Umeå University, Umea, Sweden
Department of Community Medicine and Rehabilitation, Division of Occupational Therapy, Umeå University, Umea, Sweden.
BMJ Open. 2022 May 24;12(5):e060209. doi: 10.1136/bmjopen-2021-060209.
To examine the early impact of the pandemic and of quarantine measures targeting older adults introduced in March 2020 on loneliness among older adults in Sweden. Prospective pretest-posttest and controlled interrupted time series designs.
The population of older adults receiving home care before and during the emergence of the first COVID-19 pandemic wave in Sweden in Spring 2020.
Respondents (n=45 123, mean age 85.6 years, 67.6% women) came from two waves of a total population survey targeting all community-dwelling older adults receiving home care for older adults in Sweden in Spring 2019 and 2020.
Self-reported loneliness.
Results estimated 14% (95% CI: 10 to 19) higher loneliness in Spring 2020 compared with 2019, taking covariates into account. No impact of the quarantine measure was found (1% increase, 95% CI: -1 to 4).
The results illustrate the broader public health consequences of the COVID-19 pandemic for older adults, but also suggest a relative resilience among older adults in home care to quarantine measures, at least during the first months of the pandemic. Future studies should examine the long-term effects of sustained pandemic and social distancing measures on loneliness among older adults.
研究 2020 年 3 月针对老年人实施的大流行和隔离措施对瑞典老年人孤独感的早期影响。前瞻性预测试-后测试和对照中断时间序列设计。
在 2020 年春季瑞典首次出现 COVID-19 大流行浪潮期间，接受家庭护理的老年人人群。
来自于针对瑞典所有社区居住的接受家庭护理的老年人的总人群调查的两个波次的受访者（n=45123，平均年龄 85.6 岁，67.6%女性）。
自我报告的孤独感。
考虑到协变量，结果估计 2020 年春季的孤独感比 2019 年高出 14%（95%置信区间：10 到 19）。没有发现隔离措施的影响（增加 1%，95%置信区间：-1 到 4）。
这些结果说明了 COVID-19 大流行对老年人的更广泛的公共卫生后果，但也表明家庭护理中的老年人对隔离措施具有相对的适应能力，至少在大流行的头几个月是如此。未来的研究应该研究持续的大流行和社交距离措施对老年人孤独感的长期影响。
