Prevalence and patterns of mental and cognitive impairments among missing older adults in China

Missing older adults (MOAs) are older adults whose whereabouts cannot be established at present or at any time previously. The MOAs represent a notable intersection of old age and missingness, given the accelerating population aging and sizable missing persons in many societies. However, the prevalence and patterns of mental and cognitive conditions of MOAs have received little attention. This study aimed to address this gap. This study collected data from the Toutiao Alert, a large missing-person appeal platform in China. The analytical sample included 32885 MOAs (mean age, 73.6 years; female, 40.2%) who were reported missing on the platform between 2017 and 2021. The mental and cognitive impairments and other measures were extracted from the reported information. The results show that the overall levels of mental and cognitive impairments among MOAs were 10.6 and 41.5%, respectively. Moreover, these levels varied by gender, age, and spatiotemporal factors such as the region and year of missingness. Women exhibited higher levels of mental and cognitive impairments. Age was associated with lower levels of mental impairments but higher levels of cognitive impairments. Across regions, MOAs from Northeast China had lower levels of mental and cognitive impairments. From 2017 to 2021, the mental or cognitive impairment levels initially decreased, but then increased until the most recent year. The prevalence and patterns of mental and cognitive impairments revealed in this study contributed to our understanding of the health and well-being of MOAs as one of the distinct groups within the expanding elderly population. Future healthcare policies and services targeting MOAs may benefit from these findings.