ReviewCanadian family physician Medecin de famille canadien2020
Social isolation and loneliness: the new geriatric giants: Approach for primary care.
Review in Canadian family physician Medecin de famille canadien, 2020. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 133 papers, 8 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
133 citing papers in PubMed, 8 syntheses or guidelines pooled it, 226 citations in OpenAlex.
- Loneliness among community-dwelling older adults across biological, clinical and psychosocial domains before and during the COVID-19 pandemic: a systematic review.Frontiers in public health · 2026Pooled it
- Loneliness, social isolation, and living alone: a comprehensive systematic review, meta-analysis, and meta-regression of mortality risks in older adults.Aging clinical and experimental research · 2025Pooled it
- Development of loneliness and social isolation after spousal loss: A systematic review of longitudinal studies on widowhood.Journal of the American Geriatrics Society · 2025Pooled it
- Hip fracture has profound psychosocial impacts: a systematic review of qualitative studies.Age and ageing · 2024Pooled it
- Reducing Loneliness and Social Isolation of Older Adults Through Voice Assistants: Literature Review and Bibliometric Analysis.Journal of medical Internet research · 2024Pooled it
- Multimorbidity, Loneliness, and Social Isolation. A Systematic Review.International journal of environmental research and public health · 2020Pooled it
- Practical Recommendations for Maintaining Active Lifestyle during the COVID-19 Pandemic: A Systematic Literature Review.International journal of environmental research and public health · 2020Pooled it
- Health effects of loneliness and social isolation in older adults living in congregate long term care settings: A systematic review of quantitative and qualitative evidence.Archives of gerontology and geriatricsPooled it
- Trial
- Trial
- Effectiveness of a multicomponent intervention to reduce social isolation and loneliness in community-dwelling elders: A randomized clinical trial.Nursing open · 2023Trial
- Is my loneliness killing me? Effects of loneliness and social isolation on transitions between cognitive status categories and death.Journal of personality and social psychology · 2026Article
- Smartphone technology, social network maintenance, and social participation among Mandarin-speaking older immigrants in Canada.The Gerontologist · 2026Article
- [Geriatric medicine shapes the Future : Recommendations for modern Geriatric Medicine that places older people and their needs at the centre].Zeitschrift fur Gerontologie und Geriatrie · 2026Review
- Evaluating the feasibility of Preliminary Randomised Evaluation of Singing in Dementia (PRESIDE) in community group settings.Pilot and feasibility studies · 2026Article
- The relationship between employment status and mental health among adults of different groups in Taiwan: a study with artistic leisure as a moderator.Industrial health · 2026Article
- Association rules of social alienation in maintenance hemodialysis patients: an Apriori algorithm analysis and intervention strategies.International urology and nephrology · 2026Article
- Relationship Between Health Literacy, Health Protective Behaviour, Quality of Life and Social Health in Older Adults Living in the Community.Journal of clinical nursing · 2026Observational
- The relationship between oral health and active aging among the elderly in rural China: the chain mediating effect of intergenerational support and social isolation.BMC geriatrics · 2026Article
- Social participation in stroke survivors and its influencing factors: a latent profile analysis.BMC health services research · 2026Article
73 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 at 2 institutions in 2 countries.
Funding
No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.
Abstract
objectiveTo review the problems of social isolation, loneliness, and social vulnerability in older adults and the associated risks, and to help primary care providers identify patients at risk and recommend effective interventions. SOURCES OF INFORMATION: PubMed and PsycINFO searches were conducted using the terms MAIN MESSAGE: Social isolation, loneliness, and social vulnerability are very common in older adults and are associated with considerable morbidity and mortality, comparable to established risk factors such as smoking, alcohol consumption, obesity, and frailty. Numerous interventions addressing loneliness and social isolation have been studied: social facilitation (including technology), exercise, psychological therapies, health and social services, animal therapy, befriending, and leisure and skill development. However, current evidence of effectiveness is limited. A patient-centred approach is essential to the selection of interventions. The needs of underserviced and marginalized populations, including new immigrants, older adults identifying as LGBTQ+ (lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, queer or questioning, and related communities), Indigenous seniors, and seniors living in poverty, as well as the needs of long-term care residents and older caregivers, require further evaluation.
conclusionSocial isolation, loneliness, and social vulnerability are common problems in older adults and have important health consequences. Family physicians are uniquely positioned to identify lonely and socially isolated older adults and to initiate services.
Indexed as
Identifiers
32165464PMC8302356W3011083723What OpenQuestion holds
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.