Institute of Population Research, School of Public Administration, Hohai University, West Focheng Rd No.8, Nanjing, 211100, China.
Soc Sci Med. 2024 Dec;363:117486. doi: 10.1016/j.socscimed.2024.117486. Epub 2024 Nov 12.
Pain has long been known to affect the health and well-being of older adults. However, no longitudinal study has examined the associations between pain, social isolation, and loneliness among older adults in China. This study aims to explore the relationships between pain and older Chinese adults' social isolation (family isolation and friend isolation) and loneliness, and whether these associations are moderated by gender, age, and education groups.
Data derived from the four waves of the China Longitudinal Aging Social Survey (CLASS, 2014-2020). The sample included 18,692 respondents (aged 60 years and older), and mixed-effects logistic models were used.
Pain is not significantly associated with family isolation. In contrast, pain increases the risk of friend isolation and loneliness. Regarding the moderating roles of gender, age, and education, the results show that the relationship between pain and friend isolation is stronger among older women compared to their male counterparts. The association between pain and the risk of friend isolation is stronger among young-old adults (60-69 years) than among their older counterparts (70 years and older). Conversely, the oldest old adults (80+ years) are more likely to experience loneliness combined with pain than their younger counterparts. In addition, the negative effect of pain on the risk of loneliness is stronger among the more educated than among the less educated older adults.
The findings underscore the pivotal role of pain in shaping the social well-being of older adults, and highlight the need to consider sociodemographics and socioeconomic status when developing pain prevention and management strategies.
长期以来，人们一直知道疼痛会影响老年人的健康和幸福感。然而，尚无纵向研究探讨疼痛、社会隔离和孤独感之间的关系在老年人群体中。本研究旨在探讨疼痛与中国老年成年人的社会隔离（家庭隔离和朋友隔离）和孤独感之间的关系，以及这些关联是否受性别、年龄和教育群体的调节。
数据来自中国纵向老龄化社会调查（CLASS）的四个波次（2014-2020 年）。样本包括 18692 名受访者（年龄在 60 岁及以上），使用混合效应逻辑回归模型。
疼痛与家庭隔离无显著关联。相反，疼痛增加了朋友隔离和孤独感的风险。关于性别、年龄和教育的调节作用，结果表明，疼痛与朋友隔离之间的关系在老年女性中比在男性中更强。疼痛与朋友隔离风险之间的关联在年轻老年人（60-69 岁）中比在其老年同龄人（70 岁及以上）中更强。相反，最年长的老年人（80 岁及以上）比年轻老年人更有可能同时经历疼痛和孤独感。此外，疼痛对孤独感风险的负面影响在受教育程度较高的老年人中比受教育程度较低的老年人中更强。
这些发现强调了疼痛在塑造老年成年人社会幸福感方面的关键作用，并强调在制定疼痛预防和管理策略时需要考虑社会人口统计学和社会经济地位。
