ArticleACR open rheumatology2023
Impact of Loneliness and Social Isolation on Mental Health Outcomes Among Individuals With Rheumatic Diseases During the COVID-19 Pandemic.
Article in ACR open rheumatology, 2023. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 3 papers.
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
3 citing papers in PubMed.
- Self-efficacy in idiopathic inflammatory myopathies: associated factors, profiles and patient-reported outcomes.Rheumatology (Oxford, England) · 2026Article
- Changes in serious infection and mortality among patients with ANCA-associated vasculitis during the COVID-19 pandemic: an interrupted time-series analysis of J-CANVAS.EULAR rheumatology open · 2026Article
- Generalized additive mixed models to discern data-driven theoretically informed strategies for public brain, cognitive and mental health.European journal of epidemiology · 2025Article
Corrections and comments
PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.
Authors and funding
10 authors.
Funding
Abstract
objectiveThe study objective was to assess mental and social health outcomes for individuals with rheumatic disease during the COVID-19 pandemic and evaluate the relationship of loneliness and social isolation with depression and anxiety.
methodsWe administered an international cross-sectional online survey to individuals with rheumatic disease(s) (≥18 years) between April 2020 and September 2020, with a follow-up survey from December 2020 to February 2021. We used questionnaires to evaluate loneliness (3-item UCLA Loneliness Scale [UCLA-3]), social isolation (Lubben Social Network Scale [LSNS-6]), depression (Patient Health Questionnaire [PHQ-9]), and anxiety (Generalized Anxiety Disorder 7-item [GAD-7] Scale). We used multivariable linear regression models to evaluate the cross-sectional associations of loneliness and social isolation with depression and anxiety at baseline.
resultsSeven hundred eighteen individuals (91.4% women, mean age: 45.4 ± 14.2 years) participated in the baseline survey, and 344 completed the follow-up survey. Overall, 51.1% of participants experienced loneliness (UCLA-3 score ≥6) and 30.3% experienced social isolation (LSNS-6 score <12) at baseline. Depression (PHQ-9 score ≥10) and anxiety (GAD-7 score ≥10) were experienced by 42.8% and 34.0% of participants at baseline, respectively. Multivariable models showed that experiencing both loneliness and social isolation, in comparison to experiencing neither, was significantly associated with an average 7.27 higher depression score (ß = 7.27; 95% confidence interval [CI]: 6.08-8.47) and 5.14 higher anxiety score (ß = 5.14; 95% CI: 4.00-6.28).
conclusionAside from showing substantial experience of loneliness and social isolation during the COVID-19 pandemic, our survey showed significant associations with depression and anxiety. Patient supports to address social health have potential implications for also supporting mental health.
Identifiers
What 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.