Table of Contents

Component Description

The oral health questionnaire section (OHQ) provides personal interview data on oral health topics. These topic areas and related target population groups in the OHQ section include:

Eligible Sample

All survey participants 18 years and older were eligible for the dental health perception and quality of life related questions.

Interview Setting and Mode of Administration

The Oral Health questionnaire was done before the physical examination, in the home, using the Computer-Assisted Personal Interviewing-CAPI (interviewer administered) system.

Quality Assurance & Quality Control

Several types of quality control were implemented to ensure that high quality data were collected during the survey.

Interviewer monitoring was a major responsibility for NCHS and contractor staff. Interviewers were frequently accompanied on interviews and observed to verify that the interview protocol was administered correctly. Interviewers were retrained on survey procedures if necessary.

The interviewers are encouraged to provide comments and other suggestions, based on their field experiences. NCHS has used field staff and interviewer feedback to improve the questionnaires and survey materials. NCHS and contractor staff conduct annual staff debriefing and training sessions jointly.

Interviewers are trained on new survey content and protocol changes prior to implementation in the field.
The CAPI system is programmed with built-in consistency checks to reduce data entry errors. CAPI also uses online help screens to assist interviewers in defining key terms used in the questionnaire.

Data Processing and Editing

Frequency counts were checked, “skip” patterns were verified, and the reasonableness of responses to the questions was reviewed.

Analytic Notes

In addition to the oral health questionnaire data, oral health examination data can be found in the oral health section of the NHANES 2005–2006 Exam Files (OHX). These data may be linked using the unique survey participant identifier, SEQN. Please refer to the Oral Health Examination support documentation for additional information related to the oral component and oral health questions administered at the time of the oral health examination.

Although these data were collected as part of the household questionnaire, if they are merged with the MEC exam data, exam sample weights should be used for the analyses.

Please refer to the Analytic Guidelines on the NHANES website for further details on the use of sample weights and other analytic issues.

Codebook and Frequencies

SEQN - Respondent sequence number

Variable Name:
SEQN
SAS Label:
Respondent sequence number
English Text:
Respondent sequence number.
Target:
Both males and females 18 YEARS - 150 YEARS

OHQ011 - Condition of teeth

Variable Name:
OHQ011
SAS Label:
Condition of teeth
English Text:
Now I have some questions about the condition of your teeth and gums. How would you describe the condition of {your/SP?s} teeth? Would you say . . .
Target:
Both males and females 18 YEARS - 150 YEARS
Code or Value Value Description Count Cumulative Skip to Item
11 Excellent 838 838
12 Very good 926 1764
13 Good 1764 3528
14 Fair 1217 4745
15 Poor 778 5523
77 Refused 3 5526
99 Don't know 37 5563
. Missing 0 5563

OHQ620 - How often last yr. had aching in mouth?

Variable Name:
OHQ620
SAS Label:
How often last yr. had aching in mouth?
English Text:
How often during the last year (have you/ has SP) had painful aching anywhere in (your/his/her) mouth? Would you say....
Target:
Both males and females 18 YEARS - 150 YEARS
Code or Value Value Description Count Cumulative Skip to Item
1 Very often 176 176
2 Fairly often 263 439
3 Occasionally 897 1336
4 Hardly ever 1290 2626
5 Never 2935 5561
7 Refused 0 5561
9 Don't know 2 5563
. Missing 0 5563

OHQ630 - How often felt bad because of mouth?

Variable Name:
OHQ630
SAS Label:
How often felt bad because of mouth?
English Text:
How often during the last year (have you/ has SP) felt that life in general was less satisfying because of problems with (your/his/her) teeth, mouth or dentures? Would you say....
Target:
Both males and females 18 YEARS - 150 YEARS
Code or Value Value Description Count Cumulative Skip to Item
1 Very often 132 132
2 Fairly often 175 307
3 Occasionally 404 711
4 Hardly ever 660 1371
5 Never 4182 5553
7 Refused 2 5555
9 Don't know 8 5563
. Missing 0 5563

OHQ640 - Last yr had diff w/ job because of mouth

Variable Name:
OHQ640
SAS Label:
Last yr had diff w/ job because of mouth
English Text:
How often during the last year (have you/has SP) had difficulty doing (your/his/her) usual jobs or attending school because of problems with (your/his/her) teeth, mouth or dentures? Would you say...
Target:
Both males and females 18 YEARS - 150 YEARS
Code or Value Value Description Count Cumulative Skip to Item
1 Very often 41 41
2 Fairly often 52 93
3 Occasionally 177 270
4 Hardly ever 377 647
5 Never 4912 5559
7 Refused 1 5560
9 Don't know 3 5563
. Missing 0 5563

OHQ650 - Last yr taste affected because of mouth

Variable Name:
OHQ650
SAS Label:
Last yr taste affected because of mouth
English Text:
How often during the last year (have you/has SP's) sense of taste been affected by problems with (your/his/her) teeth, mouth or dentures? Would you say...
Target:
Both males and females 18 YEARS - 150 YEARS
Code or Value Value Description Count Cumulative Skip to Item
1 Very often 56 56
2 Fairly often 63 119
3 Occasionally 227 346
4 Hardly ever 352 698
5 Never 4851 5549
7 Refused 2 5551
9 Don't know 12 5563
. Missing 0 5563

OHQ660 - Last yr avoid some food because of mouth

Variable Name:
OHQ660
SAS Label:
Last yr avoid some food because of mouth
English Text:
How often during the last year (have you/has SP) avoided particular foods because of problems with (your/his/her) teeth, mouth or dentures? Would you say...
Target:
Both males and females 18 YEARS - 150 YEARS
Code or Value Value Description Count Cumulative Skip to Item
1 Very often 207 207
2 Fairly often 205 412
3 Occasionally 662 1074
4 Hardly ever 612 1686
5 Never 3875 5561
7 Refused 1 5562
9 Don't know 1 5563
. Missing 0 5563

OHQ670 - Last yr couldn't eat because of mouth

Variable Name:
OHQ670
SAS Label:
Last yr couldn't eat because of mouth
English Text:
How often during the last year (have you/has SP) found it uncomfortable to eat food because of problems with (your/his/her) teeth, mouth or dentures? Would you say...
Target:
Both males and females 18 YEARS - 150 YEARS
Code or Value Value Description Count Cumulative Skip to Item
1 Very often 190 190
2 Fairly often 200 390
3 Occasionally 678 1068
4 Hardly ever 732 1800
5 Never 3757 5557
7 Refused 2 5559
9 Don't know 4 5563
. Missing 0 5563

OHQ680 - Last yr embarrassed because of mouth

Variable Name:
OHQ680
SAS Label:
Last yr embarrassed because of mouth
English Text:
How often during the last year (have you/has SP) been self-conscious or embarrassed because of (your/his/her) teeth, mouth or dentures? Would you say...
Target:
Both males and females 18 YEARS - 150 YEARS
Code or Value Value Description Count Cumulative Skip to Item
1 Very often 189 189
2 Fairly often 166 355
3 Occasionally 480 835
4 Hardly ever 541 1376
5 Never 4180 5556
7 Refused 2 5558
9 Don't know 5 5563
. Missing 0 5563