Risk factors for social isolation in older adults: A systematic review and meta‐analysis

OBJECTIVES: To explore the risk factors of social isolation in older adults by meta-analysis. METHODS: We examined articles that had been published on the China National Knowledge Infrastructure (CNKI), Wanfang Data Knowledge Service platform, VIP Periodical Chinese Journal Service platform, Medical Literature database, PubMed, Embase database, Chinese BioMedical Literature database (CBM), and the Cochrane Library. RevMan 5.3 software was used for meta-analysis. RESULTS: A total of 13 pieces of literature comprising 47,288 patients were included, including five in Chinese and eight in English. According to our review, the common risk factors reported were age, sex, education level, marital status, self-rated health status, depression, social support, cognitive function, and basic diseases. Gender (female), education level (lower education level), marital status (divorced), self-rated health status (poor), depression, lack of social support, inadequate cognitive function, and underlying disorders were the key risk factors for social isolation in older adults. CONCLUSIONS: To reduce social isolation in older adults, paying more attention to the aging population with poor marital statuses, low education levels, poor health statuses, depression, poor cognitive function, and other underlying diseases is necessary. It is essential to encourage patients and their family members to participate in social activities and build a multi-social support system to reduce social isolation in older adults.