Exploratory factor analysis of the Oral Health Impact Profile.

Area of Science:

• Dental Public Health
• Psychometrics
• Oral Health Outcomes Research

Background:

• Oral health-related quality of life (OHRQoL) is crucial for overall well-being.
• The Oral Health Impact Profile (OHIP) is a widely used measure of OHRQoL.
• The underlying dimensional structure of the OHIP requires further investigation.

Purpose of the Study:

• To explore the dimensionality of the Oral Health Impact Profile (OHIP).
• To identify the specific dimensions of oral health-related quality of life measured by the OHIP.
• To investigate the factor structure of the OHIP using data from the Dimensions of OHRQoL (DOQ) Project.

Main Methods:

• Exploratory factor analysis was conducted on 46 OHIP items using a large international dataset (n=5146).
• Data from the Dimensions of OHRQoL (DOQ) Project's Learning Sample were utilized.
• Horn's parallel analysis was employed to determine the optimal number of factors.

Main Results:

• A dominant general factor was identified, explaining a significant portion of the variance in OHIP scores.
• A second-order, four-factor solution emerged, supported by parallel analysis.
• The four identified factors were named: Oral Function, Oro-facial Pain, Oro-facial Appearance, and Psychosocial Impact.

Conclusions:

• The OHIP exhibits a hierarchical factor structure with a strong general factor and four distinct dimensions.
• The identified dimensions (Oral Function, Oro-facial Pain, Oro-facial Appearance, Psychosocial Impact) provide a nuanced understanding of OHRQoL.
• These findings offer two viable hypotheses for the factor structure of the OHIP, enhancing its interpretability.