Loneliness, traditional risk factor control, genetic predisposition, and development of musculoskeletal disorders
Authors' conclusion
Loneliness is associated with increased MSK disorder risk, shows an interaction with the degree of risk factor control, and its absence may modify genetic predisposition.
Study context
- Population
- UK Biobank participantsmedian follow-up 13.3 years
- Participants
- 315,197 participants
- Exposure
- Loneliness and social isolation vs their absence
- Outcome
- Incidence of any MSK disorder
Methodological detailsUK Biobank, Cox regression, polygenic risk score
- UK Biobank
- Cox regression
- Polygenic risk score
Main finding
As reported in the abstract
Overall MSK disorders
Each group vs no loneliness or social isolationHazard ratio (95% CI)
Loneliness
1.14(1.11–1.17)
Social isolation
0.96(0.94–0.99)
- Musculoskeletal (MSK) cases documented
- 79 689
Observational data: associations, not effects.
Secondary outcomes
Relative importance vs traditional risk factors
- Loneliness ranked higher in relative strength than most of the traditional risk factors
- Significant interactions (additive and multiplicative) between loneliness and traditional risk factor control
Overall MSK disorders by genetic risk
- Loneliness consistently associated with increased risk across genetic risk strata
- Absence of loneliness offset the genetic risk of overall MSK disorders (joint analysis)
Five specific MSK conditions (OA, gout, RA, low back pain, neck pain)
- Largely consistent patterns of results
Original publication
Loneliness, traditional risk factor control, genetic predisposition, and development of musculoskeletal disorders. Rheumatology (Oxford). Published 26 June 2026. doi:10.
Composed by AI from the published abstract and checked against it. How Briefs are made →