Observational studyAge and ageing2021
Effect of the COVID-19 lockdown on disease recognition and utilisation of healthcare services in the older population in Germany: a cross-sectional study.
Observational study in Age and ageing, 2021. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 62 papers.
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Who cites it
62 citing papers in PubMed, 118 citations in OpenAlex.
- Efficacy and cost-effectiveness of extended nursing roles in dementia care: Results of the cluster-randomized trial InDePendent.Alzheimer's & dementia : the journal of the Alzheimer's Association · 2025Trial
- Effects of a modified Otago exercise program delivered through outpatient physical therapy to community-dwelling older adult fallers in Greece during the COVID-19 pandemic: a controlled, randomized, multicenter trial.European geriatric medicine · 2022Trial
- Factors influencing vaccination willingness in the context of the COVID-19 pandemic: data from the CoCo-Fakt study.BMC public health · 2026Article
- Out-of-pocket healthcare expenditures in older Mexican people based on their social security status.Health policy and planning · 2026Article
- Epithelial skin cancer before, during, and after the COVID-19 pandemic.Frontiers in medicine · 2026Article
- Article
- [Estimations of incidences of mental disorders in statutory health insurance routine data: methodology and trends from 2006 to 2022].Bundesgesundheitsblatt, Gesundheitsforschung, Gesundheitsschutz · 2025Article
- Trends in outpatient healthcare visits among adults aged 50 years and older in 27 European countries: analysis of population-based survey data, 2004-2022.The Lancet regional health. Europe · 2025Article
- Help provided by community-dwelling older adults in the Netherlands during the COVID-19 pandemic.BMC geriatrics · 2025Article
- Decline in Incidence and Prevalence of Dementia: An Analysis of Outpatient Claims Data.Deutsches Arzteblatt international · 2025Observational
- Impact of COVID-19 lockdown on outpatient care for non-communicable diseases in Nepal.International journal of epidemiology · 2025Article
- SARS-CoV-2 Infection and the Risk of New Chronic Conditions: Insights from a Longitudinal Population-Based Study.International journal of environmental research and public health · 2025Article
- Future prevalence of type 2 diabetes in Germany: a projection until 2040 including incidence trends observed during the SARS-CoV-2 pandemic.Frontiers in epidemiology · 2025Article
- Beyond the COVID-19 Pandemic: Budget Impact Analysis of Remote Healthcare Delivery for Hypertension and Diabetes Mellitus Management in Thailand.ClinicoEconomics and outcomes research : CEOR · 2025Article
- Suicide rates in Germany in lockdown and non-lockdown phases during the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020/2021.PloS one · 2025Article
- Lessons learned for pandemic preparedness in the neurodegenerative research and clinical fields: an advice report based on Parkinson's disease as an example.BMC neurology · 2024Article
- Temporal and spatial changes in the provision of mental health care during the COVID-19 pandemic in Germany: a claims-based cohort study on patients with severe mental disorders.Social psychiatry and psychiatric epidemiology · 2024Article
- The impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on neurosurgery in the elderly population in Sweden.BMC public health · 2024Observational
- Patterns of psychotropic drug prescriptions and general practice consultations among community-dwelling older people with dementia during the first two years of the COVID-19 pandemic.BMC geriatrics · 2024Article
- Outpatient Health Service Utilization Among Adults with Diabetes, Hypertension and Cardiovascular Disease During the COVID-19 Pandemic - Results of Population-Based Surveys in Germany from 2019 to 2021.Journal of multidisciplinary healthcare · 2024Article
2 more citing papers are in PubMed but not listed here.
Corrections and comments
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Authors and funding
4 authors at 4 institutions in 4 countries.
Funding
No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.
Abstract
backgroundThere is little evidence about the utilisation of healthcare services and disease recognition in the older population, which was urged to self-isolate during the COVID-19 lockdown.
objectivesWe aimed to describe the utilisation of physician consultations, specialist referrals, hospital admissions and the recognition of incident diseases in Germany for this age group during the COVID-19 lockdown.
designCross-sectional observational study.
setting1,095 general practitioners (GPs) and 960 specialist practices in Germany. SUBJECTS: 2.45 million older patients aged 65 or older.
methodsThe number of documented physician consultations, specialist referrals, hospital admissions and incident diagnoses during the imposed lockdown in 2020 was descriptively analysed and compared to 2019.
resultsPhysician consultations decrease slightly in February (-2%), increase before the imposed lockdown in March (+9%) and decline in April (-18%) and May (-14%) 2020 compared to the same periods in 2019. Volumes of hospital admissions decrease earlier and more intensely than physician consultations (-39 versus -6%, respectively). Overall, 15, 16 and 18% fewer incident diagnoses were documented by GPs, neurologists and diabetologists, respectively, in 2020. Diabetes, dementia, depression, cancer and stroke were diagnosed less frequently during the lockdown (-17 to -26%), meaning that the decrease in the recognition of diseases was greater than the decrease in physician consultations.
conclusionThe data suggest that organisational changes were adopted quickly by practice management but also raise concerns about the maintenance of routine care. Prospective studies should evaluate the long-term effects of lockdowns on patient-related outcomes.
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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.