OBJECTIVES: The purpose of the present study was to assess how the eight dimensions of the SF-36 HRQoL profile instrument impact the utility scores derived from the major multiattribute utility instruments (MAUIs).

METHODS: We employed the ordinary least squares (OLS) estimator to estimate models that analyze the relationship between SF-36 dimensions and various MAUIs using data from the multi-instrument comparison (MIC) study (Richardson et al., 2015). We focused on the sensitivity of six major MAUIs – AQoL-4D, AQoL-8D, 15D, EQ-5D, SF-6D, and HUI3 – to changes in the eight SF-36 dimensions.

RESULTS: Our analysis show that the AQoL-8D demonstrates greater sensitivity to mental health (MH) compared to AQoL-4D, 15D, EQ-5D, and HUI3. The EQ-5D showed higher sensitivity to bodily pain (BP) than all other MAUIs. Additionally, the 15D was more sensitive to physical functioning (PF) compared to AQoL-4D and AQoL-8D. Finally, the SF-6D exhibited greater sensitivity to the role emotional (RE) dimension than 15D, AQoL-4D, and AQoL-8D.

CONCLUSIONS: Our study highlights that HRQoL utility scores are affected differently by the eight dimensions measured by the SF-36 survey, depending on the MAUI used. These findings allow to deduce which dimensions of the SF-36 have the greatest influence on the utility scores generated by a specific MAUI. Thus, the selection of a MAUI for research may be informed by its sensitivity to the health dimensions of particular interest.