> ## Content Index
> Fetch the complete content index at: https://www.coios.me/llms.txt
> Use this file to discover other available public pages before exploring further.

# Friend isolation, not family isolation, is linked to mortality in disaster survivors
- URL: https://www.coios.me/friend-isolation-not-family-isolation-is-linked-to/
- Published: 2026-10-16T13:00:23.000Z
- Updated: 2026-10-18T12:16:03.000Z
- Description: Among 9311 earthquake survivors followed 5.9 years, isolation from friends was associated with an adjusted hazard ratio for death of 1.28.
- Author: Daniel Ryan
- Tags: Behavioural science, Social connection, Japan, #peer-reviewed, #refines, #item, #source-2026-10, #score-60

A prospective cohort followed 9311 adults in three municipalities affected by the 2011 Great East Japan Earthquake. Social isolation was assessed once in 2011 using the Lubben Social Network Scale-6 family and friend subscales. Over 54,838 person-years to December 2017 there were 416 deaths. Isolation from friends only, 15.1% of participants, gave an adjusted hazard ratio of 1.28 (95% CI 1.01-1.63). Family-only isolation gave 0.93 (0.48-1.81) and both 1.22 (0.80-1.86); the friend association held only at ages 65 and over. Isolation was measured once, so change after the disaster and direction of causation could not be assessed.

*Why it is interesting: In general populations family isolation has been tied to mortality, friend isolation less so; here the pattern reverses. The association persists in people not classed as isolated on the overall LSNS-6 score.*

Source

[Preventive Medicine Reports, 14 October 2026](https://doi.org/10.1016/j.pmedr.2026.103654?ref=coios.me)

Paper

Association between types of social isolation and all-cause mortality among the survivors in the disaster-affected area of the great East Japan earthquake: The RIAS study

Authors

Kanda S, Takusari E, Shimoda H, Sakata K, Tanno K

DOI

10.1016/j.pmedr.2026.103654

Full text

[Open copy](https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC13659327/?ref=coios.me) (open-access copy, PubMed Central)

Type

Peer-reviewed article

Design

Prospective cohort, 9,311 Great East Japan Earthquake survivors, followed 2011–2017, LSNS-6 family and friend subscales, Cox models

Verdict

Refines prior evidence

Driver

[Social connection](https://www.coios.me/d-social-connection/)

Free full text

[Free to read at the publisher](https://doi.org/10.1016/j.pmedr.2026.103654?ref=coios.me)