DHA exam for dentists: GEN5301

Facts last verified 5 October 2026.

For the Dubai Health Authority (DHA) General Dentist title, prepare for GEN5301. Its outline includes clinical dentistry, patient education and ethics.

Is this the right paper for you?

GEN5301 is the General Dentist paper. Dental specialist and consultant titles have separate assessments.

  • For the standard overseas route, you need BDS, DMD, DDS or equivalent, completed internship and 2 years of clinical work.
  • UAE nationals, children of Emirati women and some UAE graduates have experience exceptions.
  • ADC, NDEB, ORE, NBDE parts, EDEE and listed registration routes can exempt you. Each has conditions; document checks and activation remain.

Pass 60%

Format at a glance

150 questions. Time: 3 hours, including registration and the exam introduction. Pass mark: 60%.

Delivered by Prometric.

What the paper covers

We did not find published section weights for the DHA paper for dentists. ProMCQ's mock papers use the published Qatar DHP blueprint for dentists as practice targets. These are not DHA's own weights. Each mock includes national-topic content, so its final question shares can differ slightly from these targets.

  • Biomedical Sciences (20%): Use oral anatomy and pathology to choose the next step in care. Revise histology and how drugs work.
  • Evidence-based Practice (3.3%): Read a study and use its findings to choose care.
  • Patient Assessment and Diagnosis (6.7%): Take a history, examine the patient and choose tests. Check how other diseases change dental care.
  • Comprehensive Treatment Planning (4%): Plan care when a patient has several problems. Decide what to treat first and when to refer.
  • Health and Safety (4%): Keep the surgery safe. Revise infection control, sharps, radiation and how to clean instruments.
  • Management of Emergencies (4%): Treat a patient in an emergency in the dental chair. Know which emergency drugs to use.
  • Prevention / Oral Health / Population Health (4%): Prevent decay with fluoride, sealants and advice about food. Revise measures that help a whole community.
  • Control of Pain and Anxiety (3.3%): Choose a local anaesthetic and check its dose. Revise pain control and sedation.
  • Periodontics (6.7%): Diagnose and treat gum disease. Revise care with and without surgery.
  • Pediatric Dentistry (6.7%): Care for children with pain or dental trauma. Revise pulp care and how to manage their behaviour.
  • Orthodontics (3.3%): Check growth and tooth position. Know when to refer for braces or jaw surgery.
  • Restorative Dentistry and Endodontics (10.7%): Choose and assess filling materials. Revise endodontic diagnosis and treatment.
  • Prosthodontics (6.7%): Plan dentures, crowns and bridges. Revise implants and cosmetic dentistry.
  • Oral Surgery and Oral Medicine (6.7%): Revise oral medicine, surgery and TMJ disorders. Manage problems after an extraction.
  • Communication Skills (4%): Explain choices and consent. Help an anxious patient understand the treatment.
  • Professionalism (2.7%): Keep records and be open after an error. Work within your skills and refer when needed.
  • Ethical and legal (2%): Revise UAE legal duties, privacy and consent for children.
  • Team-working, Management, Leadership (1.3%): Work with and lead dental nurses and colleagues.

Sample questions

Eight original practice questions from the DHA dentists bank. They are written to the paper's style, not taken from the live exam. Pick an answer to see the key and explanation.

  1. Which cemento-enamel junction relationship occurs in about 30% of teeth?

    1. Cementum overlapping enamel
    2. Edge-to-edge junction
    3. Gap between the tissues
    4. Enamel overlapping cementum
    Answer

    B. The classic teaching frequencies at the CEJ are cementum overlapping enamel in about 60–65% of teeth, an edge-to-edge (butt) junction in about 30%, and a gap in about 5–10%.

  2. A 68-year-old woman's periapical radiograph shows a markedly reduced pulp chamber and narrow canals in tooth 36. The tooth is unrestored, caries-free and has no history of injury. Which process chiefly accounts for this pulp-space narrowing?

    1. Tertiary dentin from irritation
    2. Physiologic secondary dentin deposition
    3. Post-traumatic calcific metamorphosis
    4. Reduced pulpal vascularity
    Answer

    B. Age-related pulp-space reduction comes from continued physiologic secondary dentin deposition. Tertiary dentin forms only in response to injury or irritation, and age-related narrowing is not the same as post-traumatic calcific metamorphosis.

  3. A 30-year-old man with previously healthy gingiva is unable to brush for 4 days, and a gingival biopsy is then taken. Which classic lesion, with its dominant cell, does the biopsy show?

    1. Initial lesion, neutrophil-dominated
    2. Early lesion, T-lymphocyte-dominated
    3. Established lesion, plasma-cell-dominated
    4. Advanced lesion, B-lymphocyte-dominated
    Answer

    A. In the Page and Schroeder sequence, the initial lesion is seen within about 4 days of plaque accumulation, with predominantly neutrophils (PMNs) and early vascular and sulcular changes. The early lesion (T lymphocytes) follows at about 1 week. The established lesion (plasma cells) and the advanced lesion (bone loss) come later.

  4. A 30-year-old woman was positioned incorrectly for a panoramic radiograph. Her anterior teeth appear blurred on the image, although no metal objects were worn. What explains the blurring of these teeth?

    1. The beam intercepted them twice
    2. Palatoglossal air space overlay
    3. Cervical-spine superimposition
    4. They lay outside the focal trough
    Answer

    D. A panoramic image is made as the tube and receptor rotate around the patient. Only structures within the focal trough are imaged sharply; when a malpositioned patient places teeth outside it, those teeth blur or superimpose. Correct head positioning keeps the teeth within the focal trough; tongue contact with the palate separately prevents the palatoglossal air-space band.

  5. A posterior abutment is being prepared for a cast-metal occlusal rest. What clearance should be provided at the marginal ridge for adequate metal bulk?

    1. About 1.5 mm
    2. About 1.0 mm
    3. About 2.0 mm
    4. About 2.5 mm
    Answer

    A. A cast-metal posterior occlusal rest seat requires about 1.5 mm of marginal-ridge reduction to provide adequate metal thickness.

  6. A patient has an osseointegrated implant beside a healthy natural tooth. How does the vascularity of the peri-implant tissues compare with that of the periodontal tissues?

    1. It is equivalent around the implant and natural tooth after healing
    2. It is higher around the implant than around the natural tooth
    3. It is absent around the implant but present around the natural tooth
    4. It is lower around the implant than around the natural tooth
    Answer

    D. Peri-implant tissues are less vascular than the periodontal tissues around a natural tooth because the implant lacks the vascular contribution associated with a periodontal ligament.

  7. An otherwise cooperative 8-year-old needs a routine restoration but has a recent episode of acute otitis media. Why should nitrous oxide/oxygen be avoided at this visit?

    1. Nitrous oxide can interfere with methionine synthase metabolism
    2. Nitrous oxide can impair gas exchange in severe respiratory disease
    3. Nitrous oxide can raise intraocular pressure after recent retinal surgery
    4. Nitrous oxide can expand gas within the middle-ear space
    Answer

    D. A recent middle-ear disturbance is a contraindication clue because nitrous oxide enters and expands closed gas-filled spaces, which can increase pressure in the middle ear.

  8. Several villages rely on wells in a fluoride-rich aquifer. Surveillance shows endemic dental and skeletal fluorosis. What is the most appropriate public-health intervention?

    1. Fluoridate the well water toward the caries-preventive target
    2. Provide dietary fluoride tablets to residents using the wells
    3. Introduce fluoridated salt as an additional community vehicle
    4. Defluoridate the well water toward a safe concentration
    Answer

    D. The fluoride-rich aquifer and endemic fluorosis indicate excessive natural exposure. The supply should be defluoridated to a safe, appropriate concentration rather than supplemented.

Full papers in the real format

10 timed mock papers of 150 questions each, built to the weights above. No question repeats across papers.

How to prepare

  • Our suggested approach: study each clinical image before reading the options.
  • If your training gave implants, cosmetics and orthognathics little time, revise them separately. DHA also lists dental education and ethics.
  • Learn local anaesthetic dose limits and emergency drug doses.
  • Practise full 150-question mocks with a 3-hour clock. Answering time on exam day is shorter.

Licensing steps

  1. Check eligibility: Follow DHA licence steps.
  2. Book the exam: Follow DHA fees and booking.
  3. Get your result: Follow DHA results and next steps.

Frequently asked questions

What is the DHA dentist pass mark?

60% for General Dentist GEN5301. DHA gives a pass or fail result, with no raw score.

How long is the DHA dentist exam?

150 questions in a 3-hour appointment. Registration and the introduction are included, so answering time is shorter.

Where can you check exam exemptions?

Read DHA licence steps for your title’s routes and conditions. An exemption removes only the exam.

Which books does DHA list for dentists?

Neville for oral pathology, Cohen for endodontics, Lindhe for periodontology and Malamed for local anaesthesia are examples.

Sources

Facts last verified 2026-10-05.

  1. Healthcare Professional Licensing Assessment Guideline: Computer Based Testing (updated September 2026), Dubai Health Authority
  2. Unified Healthcare Professional Qualification Requirements, April 2025, MOHAP, DOH, DHA and SHA
  3. Manual for Licensing Healthcare Professionals, Dubai Health Authority
  4. Manual for Professional Assessment, Dubai Health Authority
  5. Get Registered (service description), Dubai Health Authority
  6. Activate Professional License (service description), Dubai Health Authority