ArticlePloS one2017
Taking stock of the social determinants of health: A scoping review.
Article in PloS one, 2017. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 83 papers, 2 of them syntheses that pooled it.
What it found
Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.
The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.
The trial behind it
Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.
Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.
Who cites it
83 citing papers in PubMed, 2 syntheses or guidelines pooled it.
- Evaluation of Social Impact Within Primary School Health Promotion: A Systematic Review.The Journal of school health · 2022Pooled it
- Social determinants of health in electronic health records and their impact on analysis and risk prediction: A systematic review.Journal of the American Medical Informatics Association : JAMIA · 2020Pooled it
- Treatment Initiation, Substance Use Trajectories, and the Social Determinants of Health in Persons Living With HIV Seeking Medication for Opioid Use Disorder.Substance abuse · 2023Trial
- Structural and Intermediate Social Determinants of Health Linked to Adolescent Pregnancy in the Peruvian Rural Context.International journal of environmental research and public health · 2026Article
- Social determinants of health and antimicrobial resistance in the UK: a scoping review.BMJ open · 2026Article
- The Association Between Social Determinants of Health and HIV Risk Behaviors and HIV Testing Among Sexual and Gender Minority Individuals: A National Survey Study.AIDS and behavior · 2026Article
- Exposome and mental health across the lifespan: research and clinical perspectives.Neuropsychopharmacology : official publication of the American College of Neuropsychopharmacology · 2026Review
- Financial decision-making power and mental well-being in older adults: a nationwide longitudinal cohort study in China.BMC geriatrics · 2026Article
- Social determinants of health equity for people with pain: from understanding to action.Pain reports · 2026Article
- Extending the boundaries of care: Collaboratively planning connections between rehabilitation and community resources for chronic pain self-management.Canadian journal of pain = Revue canadienne de la douleur · 2026Article
- Social drivers and pediatric injury outcomes in Northern Tanzania: A prospective pediatric injury registry secondary analysis.PLOS global public health · 2026Article
- Efficacy of Medical-Legal Partnerships to Address Health-Harming Legal Needs: A Systematic Review of Experimental Studies in the Field.American journal of lifestyle medicine · 2025Review
- To facilitate realisation of access, participation, and equity in healthcare: an interview study with policy makers in a Swedish region.BMC public health · 2025Article
- Health Inequities in the Epidemiology, Diagnosis, Treatment, and Outcomes of Plastic Surgery: A Scoping Review.Plastic surgery (Oakville, Ont.) · 2025Review
- Centering Equity in Evidence-Informed Decision Making: Theoretical and Practical Considerations.The Milbank quarterly · 2025Article
- Subtyping Social Determinants of Health in the "All of Us" Program: Network Analysis and Visualization Study.Journal of medical Internet research · 2025Article
- Article
- Perceptions of brain health and aging among middle-aged latinos: A qualitative paper.Patient education and counseling · 2025Article
- Sources of evidence, pathways, and processes to support disability-inclusive decision-making in low- and middle-income countries: A scoping review.PLOS global public health · 2025Article
- Social determinants of participation in genetic research among Puerto Ricans and in the Puerto Rican diaspora.Social science & medicine (1982) · 2024Article
23 more citing papers are in PubMed but not listed here.
Corrections and comments
PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.
Authors and funding
2 authors.
Funding
No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.
Abstract
backgroundIn recent decades, the social determinants of health (SDOH) has gained increasing prominence as a foundational concept for population and public health in academic literature and policy documents, internationally. However, alongside its widespread dissemination, and in light of multiple conceptual models, lists, and frameworks, some dilution and confusion is apparent. This scoping review represents an attempt to take stock of SDOH literature in the context of contemporary population and public health.
methodsWe conducted a scoping review to synthesize and map SDOH literature, informed by the methods of Arksey and O'Malley (2005). We searched 5 academic and 3 grey literature databases for "social determinants of health" and "population health" or "public health" or "health promotion," published 2004-2014. We also conducted a search on "inequity" or "inequality" or "disparity" or "social gradient" and "Canad*" to ensure that we captured articles where this language was used to discuss the SDOH. We included articles that discussed SDOH in depth, either explicitly or in implicit but nuanced ways. We hand-searched reference lists to further identify relevant articles.
findingsOur synthesis of 108 articles showed wide variation by study setting, target audience, and geographic scope, with most articles published in an academic setting, by Canadian authors, for policy-maker audiences. SDOH were communicated by authors as a list, model, or story; each with strengths and weaknesses. Thematic analysis identified one theme: health equity as an overarching and binding concept to the SDOH. Health equity was understood in different ways with implications for action on the SDOH.
conclusionsAmong the vast SDOH literature, there is a need to identify and clearly articulate the essence and implications of the SDOH concept. We recommend that authors be intentional in their efforts to present and discuss SDOH to ensure that they speak to its foundational concept of health equity.
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Registered trials
Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.