Menewab Birhane Desta, Demessie Negesu Gizaw, Azagew Abere Woretaw, Abate Hailemichael Kindie, Mekonnen Chilot Kassa
Department of Medical Nursing, School of Nursing, College of Medicine and Health Sciences, University of Gondar, Gondar, Ethiopia.
Front Epidemiol. 2025 May 21;5:1545342. doi: 10.3389/fepid.2025.1545342. eCollection 2025.
Loneliness is a growing public health issue, particularly among older adults, owing to various internal and external factors related to ageing. However; evidence regarding this segment of the Ethiopian population is scarce. Therefore, this study aimed to assess the prevalence of loneliness and its associated factors among older adults in Ethiopia.
This community-based cross-sectional study was conducted from April 20 to May 20, 2023. A multistage systematic sampling technique, using an interviewer-administered questionnaire, was used. Data were entered into Epi Data version 4.6.0.0 and exported to the Stata version 14 software for analysis. A binary logistic regression analysis was conducted. Variables with a -value < 0.20 in the Bivariable analysis were entered into multivariable regression and variables with a -value < 0.05, with a 95% confidence interval (CI) were considered statistically significant.
A total of 840 older adults took part with a 99.2% response rate. The overall prevalence of loneliness among older adults was 48.69%, with 95% CI = 45.31-52.07%. Living alone (OR=2.59, 95% CI = 1.11-6.05), the presence of chronic illness (OR = 1.69, 95% CI = 1.12-2.54), sleep time greater than 9 h (OR = 1.56, 95% CI = 1.08-2.22), impairment (OR = 5.09, 95% CI = 3.17-8.19), and poor social support (OR = 4.38, 95% CI = 2.53-7.59) were positively, but family size <5 (OR = 0.62, 95% CI = 0.45-0.85) and good health status (OR = 0.43, 95% CI = 0.27-0.66) were negatively associated with loneliness among older adults.
Nearly half of the participants felt lonely. Hence, every concerned body should pay special attention to this sidelined segment of the population by creating better social support networks, providing a conducive living environment, and providing aid to impaired older adults.
由于与衰老相关的各种内部和外部因素，孤独感正成为一个日益严重的公共卫生问题，尤其是在老年人中。然而，关于埃塞俄比亚这部分人群的证据很少。因此，本研究旨在评估埃塞俄比亚老年人中孤独感的患病率及其相关因素。
本基于社区的横断面研究于2023年4月20日至5月20日进行。采用多阶段系统抽样技术，使用访谈员管理的问卷。数据录入Epi Data 4.6.0.0版本，并导出到Stata 14软件进行分析。进行二元逻辑回归分析。在双变量分析中P值<0.20的变量进入多变量回归，P值<0.05且95%置信区间（CI）的变量被认为具有统计学意义。
共有840名老年人参与，回复率为99.2%。老年人孤独感的总体患病率为48.69%，95%CI = 45.31 - 52.07%。独居（OR = 2.59，95%CI = 1.11 - 6.05）、患有慢性病（OR = 1.69，95%CI = 1.12 - 2.54）、睡眠时间超过9小时（OR = 1.56，95%CI = 1.08 - 2.22）、有残疾（OR = 5.09，95%CI = 3.17 - 8.19）和社会支持差（OR = 4.38，95%CI = 2.53 - 7.59）与老年人孤独感呈正相关，但家庭规模<5（OR = 0.62，95%CI = 0.45 - 0.85）和健康状况良好（OR = 0.43，95%CI = 0.27 - 0.66）与老年人孤独感呈负相关。
近一半的参与者感到孤独。因此，每个相关机构都应通过建立更好的社会支持网络、提供有利的生活环境以及为有残疾的老年人提供援助，特别关注这一被边缘化的人群。
