Dental-related function in individuals with stroke: A confirmatory factor analysis of the dental activities test

Aims: The dental activities test (DAT), designed to assess individuals’ ability to perform oral health-related activities, was initially tested among 90 assisted living residents with normal to severely impaired cognition. This study aimed to examine the reliability (internal consistency), convergent validity, and structural validity of DAT among individuals with stroke. Methods and Results: This study was a secondary analysis of data collected for a cross-sectional study that aimed to understand oral disease patterns among 207 individuals with stroke from three hospitals in China. Convergent validity was examined using Spearman's Correlation coefficient (r_s) for correlation between DAT scores and the assessments of physical function and cognition. Structural validity was examined using Confirmatory Factor Analysis (CFA). The DAT demonstrated good estimates for internal consistency (Kuder Richardson-20 = 0.85, 95% confidence of interval [CI] = 0.82, 0.88), convergent validity (r_s range: 0.43-0.61, all P <.001), and good structural validity with a one-factor structure. Conclusion: Findings supported the reliability and validity of DAT as a unidimensional construct in measuring the ability to perform oral health-related activities in persons with stroke. Further testing among different patient populations and care settings is needed to accumulate evidence and expand the use of the test.