SynthesisPloS one2017
Social relationships and physician utilization among older adults-A systematic review.
Synthesis in PloS one, 2017. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 11 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
11 citing papers in PubMed, 2 syntheses or guidelines pooled it.
- Health Care Utilization Following Interventions to Improve Social Well-Being: A Systematic Review and Meta-analysis.JAMA network open · 2023Pooled it
- Cognitive, functional, physical, and nutritional status of the oldest old encountered in primary care: a systematic review.BMC family practice · 2020Pooled it
- Where low-income seniors receive their heart health and diabetes information: a cross-sectional survey.BMC public health · 2025Article
- Social support and physical activity: does general health matter?European review of aging and physical activity : official journal of the European Group for Research into Elderly and Physical Activity · 2024Article
- Exploring the association between social isolation and utilization of primary health services by older adults: evidence from China.Frontiers in public health · 2024Article
- COVID-19 restrictions promoted the newly occurring loneliness in older people - a prospective study in a memory clinic population.Frontiers in psychiatry · 2024Article
- Social relations and contact with general practitioner in a middle-aged Danish population: a prospective register- and survey-based cohort study.BMC health services research · 2022Article
- Effects of Social Participation by Middle-Aged and Elderly Residents on the Utilization of Medical Services: Evidence From China.Frontiers in public health · 2022Article
- Personal Social Networks of Community-Dwelling Oldest Old During the Covid-19 Pandemic-A Qualitative Study.Frontiers in public health · 2021Article
- Differences in medical specialist utilization among older people in need of long-term care - results from German health claims data.International journal for equity in health · 2020Article
- Social Relationships, Age and the Use of Preventive Health Services: Findings from the German Ageing Survey.International journal of environmental research and public health · 2019Article
Corrections and comments
PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.
Authors and funding
3 authors.
Funding
No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.
Abstract
backgroundIn older age health needs and demand for health services utilization increase. Individual's social relationships can play a decisive role regarding the utilization of outpatient health care services. This systematic review examines the associations of structural and functional dimensions of social relationships with outpatient health services use of older adults.
methodsThe databases PubMed, CINAHL, SocINDEX, PsycINFO, International Bibliography of the Social Sciences (IBSS), Sociological Abstracts, and Applied Social Sciences Index and Abstracts (ASSIA) were searched in February 2016. The methodological and reporting quality of the articles was assessed and the results were synthesized descriptively and systematically.
resultsOut of 1.392 hits, 36 articles (35 studies) were included in the systematic review. The methodological and reporting quality of the included articles was reasonable. Various structural and functional characteristics of social relationships were associated with the use (yes/no) and the frequency of using outpatient care among older adults. The majority of the associations between structural dimensions of social relationships and the use of physicians were positive and moderate in strength. The associations between functional dimensions of social relationships and the probability of using physician services were inconsistent and varied in strength. For the most part, social relationship variables assigned to the structural dimension were positively and weakly to moderately associated with the frequency of physician visits. Functional aspects of social relationships also tended to have positive associations with the frequency of physician utilization. The associations were weak to moderate in strength.
conclusionsMeasuring social relationships and their influence on health services use is a challenging methodological endeavor indicated by the inconclusive results. The results suggest that the outpatient care utilization behavior of older individuals being structurally and functionally integrated in social relationships is different to older adults being socially isolated or having no social support. All in all, the current status of quantitative data was insufficient. Future health services research should accentuate social ties in more detail, especially according to quality aspects of social relationships.
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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.