Social Isolation Experiences in Patients With Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease: A Qualitative Study

To describe the lived experience of social isolation among patients with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) using home non-invasive ventilation and to identify the factors that shape it.

A qualitative descriptive study using semi-structured face-to-face interviews and non-participant observation reported according to the Consolidated Criteria for Reporting Qualitative Research (COREQ) checklist.

Twenty patients using home non-invasive ventilation for at least 1 month were recruited purposively from a tertiary teaching hospital in Hunan, China, between 10 and 25 July 2026. Interviews were audio-recorded, transcribed verbatim and analysed using inductive qualitative content analysis.

Three themes and nine sub-themes emerged: Self-withdrawal from Social Fields (disease-related impairment of interpersonal functioning, health-related anxiety, difficulties in social role adaptation); Disruption of Psychological Homeostasis (expressive reticence, psychological distress, loss of motivation for social and leisure participation); and Weakening of External Social Support Systems (desire for family support, expectations of external social support, need for professional support). A self-reinforcing cycle linked physical symptoms, psychological withdrawal and eroding support networks.

Social isolation in this population is not merely a by-product of physical limitation but an interwoven condition shaped by bodily constraint, emotional distress and support deficits.

Nurses should routinely assess social withdrawal in patients with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease and address symptom control, behavioural activation and multilayered support spanning family, community and clinical services.

This study addressed the poorly understood lived experience of social isolation among these patients in China, identifying interlocking bodily, psychological and social mechanisms that produce and sustain isolation. Findings are relevant to nurses and services caring for patients with chronic respiratory disease worldwide.

Reporting adhered to the COREQ 32-item checklist.

Patients and members of the public were not involved in the design, conduct, analysis or reporting of this study. The 20 patients who took part contributed as research participants only; all provided written informed consent before data collection began.