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Hearing impairment is a highly prevalent condition and potential risk factor of loneliness in older adults. There is little evidence on whether living arrangement modifies the effects of hearing impairment on loneliness in older adults. (1) Explore the relationship between hearing impairment and loneliness in old adults; (2) investigate the modifying effect of living arrangement on the association between hearing impairment and loneliness. A cross-sectional analysis was conducted of 7070 participants (aged 60–101) in Shandong province of China. Hearing impairment was measured by a single self-reported question. Variables about social demography and physical functioning were assessed using self-administered questionnaires, and loneliness using short-form UCLA Loneliness Scale. Linear regression models were performed to evaluate the association between hearing impairment and loneliness and possible effect modified by living arrangement. After controlling variables, older adults with hearing impairment reported significantly higher levels of loneliness than those with normal hearing (β = 0.024; P

Frailty is a public health concern in the ageing population. Little is known about the role of gender in the relationship between frailty and health care utilization in older adults. The study aims to examine gender differences in the association between different frailty status and health care utilization among Chinese older people. A total of 7070 older adults (60+) from Shandong Province, China, were enrolled in this study. Frailty was assessed by frailty index constructed using 45 health deficits. Multivariate logistic regression models were employed separately for men and women to examine the impact of frailty on self-care, outpatient, and inpatient utilization. Overall, the prevalence of frailty was 7.9% in older adults, with 7.1% and 8.3% in men and women, respectively. 49.4% respondents reported they had self-care in the previous 2 weeks, and women were more likely to have self-care than men. Being pre-frail and frail was significantly associated with utilization of all types of health care among older men and women, and the relationship was stronger in the frail groups than that in the pre-frail groups except for self-care. Respective odds ratios for outpatient utilization were higher in men than that in women. Frailty is a frequent condition in Chinese older adults. The association between frailty and health care utilization (except outpatient) tended to be stronger in women than men. The gender differences should be considered when designing the preventing or delaying the installation of frailty and geriatric care plans.