Effects of transient and chronic loneliness on major depression in older adults: A longitudinal study

Objectives: The number of older adults is rapidly rising globally. Loneliness is a common problem that can deteriorate health. The aims of this work were to identify different types of loneliness (transient and chronic) and to assess their association with depression over time.

Methods: A nationally representative sample from the Spanish population comprising 1190 individuals aged 50+ years was interviewed on three evaluations over a 7-year period. The UCLA Loneliness Scale was used to measure loneliness. While chronic loneliness was defined as the presence of loneliness across all three waves, transient loneliness expressed the presence of loneliness in one wave only. A 12-month major depressive episode was assessed at each interview. After confirming the cross-sectional relationship, a multilevel mixed-effects model was used to examine the association between loneliness and depression.

Results: Almost a quarter of individuals felt lonely and one out of 10 presented depression at baseline. Of the sample, 22.78% showed transient loneliness, while 6.72% presented the chronic type. People experiencing chronic loneliness were at a higher risk of presenting major depression (OR = 6.11; 95% CI = 2.62, 14.22) than those presenting transient loneliness (OR = 2.22; 95% CI = 1.19, 4.14). This association varied over time and was stronger at the first follow-up than at the second one.

Conclusions: Focusing on loneliness prevention could reduce the risk of depression. Chronic loneliness is a public health problem that should be addressed through the full participation of the political, social, and medical sectors.