SDLE: Saudi Dental Licensure Examination

Facts last verified 5 October 2026.

Restorative dentistry is 40% of the SDLE. Periodontics and endodontics add 35%. Give these subjects enough study time.

Is this the right paper for you?

Dentists use the SDLE. The SCFHS criteria group bachelor’s degrees in medicine and dentistry under the Arabic category طبيب عام. This shared category does not mean dentists take the SMLE. Higher qualifications lead to separate ranks.

  • A pass in the same SCFHS specialty within 5 years can exempt you from a new assessment. High-risk specialties are excluded. Check the licence steps.

Scaled score

Format at a glance

200 questions. Time: Two 100-question sections of 120 minutes with a 30-minute break. Pass mark: 542 on a 200–800 scale.

Delivered by Prometric.

What the paper covers

ProMCQ sets these topic targets for its mock papers, using the published SCFHS blueprint as a guide. They can differ from the official weights, so check the blueprint for those. Each mock includes national-topic content, so its final question shares can differ slightly from these targets.

  • Endodontics (17%): Endodontics is 17%. Revise pulpal and periapical diagnosis, access, canal treatment and complications.
  • Orthodontics & Paediatric Dentistry (10%): Orthodontics and paediatric dentistry is 10%. Include tooth eruption, growth, behaviour and early care.
  • Periodontics (18%): Periodontics is 18%. Revise diagnosis, staging and when to treat.
  • Restorative Dentistry (40%): Restorative dentistry is 40%. Practise diagnosis and treatment choices.
  • Oral Medicine & Oral Surgery (15%): Oral medicine and surgery is 15%. Include lesions, extractions, local anaesthesia and emergencies.

Sample questions

Eight original practice questions from the SCFHS / SMLE 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. Percussion tenderness persists after an apparently technically acceptable root canal treatment. The cause has not been established, and the patient has no systemic features. What is the most appropriate next step?

    1. Test the adjacent teeth to look for a non-endodontic source
    2. Transilluminate and stain the crown to look for a crack
    3. Probe circumferentially for an isolated deep periodontal defect
    4. Check the occlusion and review the postoperative radiograph
    Answer

    D. Persistent symptoms after an apparently acceptable treatment require a structured local assessment, beginning with the occlusion and a review of working length on the postoperative radiograph, before pursuing fracture or non-endodontic causes.

  2. A 5-year-old girl has an alveolar crest measured 2.5 mm apical to the cementoenamel junctions of adjacent primary molars on a dental radiograph. How should this finding be interpreted?

    1. Periodontal bone loss
    2. Within normal limits
    3. Normal age-related change
    4. Beam-angulation artefact
    Answer

    A. The primary-dentition crest normally lies 1 ± 0.5 mm from the CEJ. A distance greater than 2 mm indicates bone loss, so the measured 2.5 mm is abnormal.

  3. A failed casting has a localized void. The sprue-and-reservoir arrangement is being redesigned before the remake. Which configuration best prevents recurrence?

    1. A correctly placed sprue with an effective reservoir
    2. A thermal gradient directing solidification away from the sprue
    3. A venting design that releases gas evolved in the mold
    4. A sprue attached at the thinnest part of the pattern
    Answer

    A. A properly sized and positioned sprue connected to an effective molten-metal reservoir feeds the contracting casting and supports directional solidification toward the sprue.

  4. A 45-year-old man is diagnosed with periodontitis after charting shows interdental clinical attachment loss and radiographs show bone loss. After 3 months of excellent plaque control, gingival bleeding and erythema have resolved. What is the expected status of his attachment loss?

    1. Largely persists
    2. Fully reverses
    3. Reverses interdentally only
    4. Converts to pseudopocketing
    Answer

    A. Plaque-induced gingivitis is fully reversible once the biofilm challenge is controlled. In periodontitis, plaque control can resolve the inflammation, but the lost clinical attachment and bone are not fully reversed by plaque control alone. Resolution of bleeding therefore does not mean the attachment level has returned.

  5. A patient needs the crestal alveolar bone level adjacent to the posterior teeth assessed radiographically. Why are selected bitewings preferred over a panoramic survey?

    1. Panoramic imaging shows posterior crests with less distortion than bitewings
    2. Bitewings reliably include every full root and its periapical region
    3. Panoramic imaging is the first choice when fine apical detail is required
    4. Bitewings display posterior crests efficiently and with less distortion
    Answer

    D. Selected bitewings display the alveolar crests adjacent to posterior teeth efficiently and with less distortion than a panoramic survey.

  6. A 27-year-old man with gingivitis has no temporary limitation of mechanical cleaning access. He asks to use chlorhexidine rinse daily instead of brushing and interdental cleaning. What is the most appropriate long-term plaque-control plan?

    1. Indefinite chlorhexidine monotherapy
    2. Long-term chlorhexidine plus brushing
    3. Professional air polishing alone
    4. Mechanical cleaning without chlorhexidine
    Answer

    D. When mechanical access is not limited, routine long-term plaque control is mechanical cleaning by toothbrushing and interdental cleaning. Chlorhexidine at 0.12%–0.2% can be used as a short-term adjunct for gingivitis or a temporary hygiene limitation, including after periodontal surgery, when a course of about 2 weeks is common. Prolonged use causes extrinsic brown staining of the teeth and tongue and taste alteration. It also increases supragingival calculus formation and can irritate the mucosa.

  7. A pediatric dentist is preparing to use an opioid–benzodiazepine sedation regimen. Which pair of continuous monitoring modalities is specifically indicated for this higher-risk regimen?

    1. Pulse oximetry and blood pressure
    2. Capnography and blood pressure
    3. Heart rate and blood pressure
    4. Pulse oximetry and capnography
    Answer

    D. Continuous pulse oximetry tracks oxygenation, while capnography monitors exhaled carbon dioxide and can identify inadequate ventilation earlier.

  8. A conventional solid/multicystic ameloblastoma has a well-defined radiographic border. Why can curettage confined to that border have a high recurrence rate?

    1. The tumor remains within one cystic lining without invasive components
    2. The tumor's benign histology keeps it within the visible edge
    3. The tumor grows microscopically between trabeculae beyond the visible edge
    4. The tumor is removed as a complete epithelial lining during curettage
    Answer

    C. Conventional solid/multicystic ameloblastoma extends microscopically between adjacent trabeculae beyond the radiographic border. Curettage can therefore leave viable tumor behind even when the visible lesion appears removed.

Full papers in the real format

10 timed mock papers of 200 questions each, built to the weights above. No question repeats across papers.

How to prepare

  • Use the suggested books: Neville, White and Pharoah, Lindhe, Proffit and Malamed. SCFHS calls its references study aids.
  • Practise cases that move from what you see in the mouth or on an X-ray to diagnosis, then treatment.
  • Revise local-anaesthetic doses. Practise the steps for a medical emergency until you can recall them quickly.
  • The 2022 SDLE guide bans discussing live questions, cases or answers with candidates or study groups. This applies before, during and after the exam.
  • The SDLE guide gives no way to turn mock marks into scaled scores. Use mocks to find weak topics.

Licensing steps

  1. Check your title and documents: Check which title fits you. Finish DataFlow, then send your file through Mumaris Plus. Read the guide
  2. Check fees and book: Book the paper on your permit. Choose a date within the period printed on it. Read the guide
  3. Check results and register: Find your score and next step. Check your attempts before you book again. Read the guide

Frequently asked questions

What is the SDLE passing score?

542 on a 200 to 800 scale. (SDLE guide).

How many questions are in the SDLE?

200 in 2 parts of 100, lasting 120 minutes each. There is a 30-minute break. (SDLE guide).

Which subject has the most weight in the SDLE?

Restorative dentistry has 40%. The 2022 and 2026 guides give the same domain weights.

How much does DataFlow cost for a dentist?

The doctor and dentist package is SAR 600. Check its contents and extra charges in the fees guide.

Sources

Facts last verified 2026-10-05.

  1. Membership Regulations Criteria (Arabic), Saudi Commission for Health Specialties
  2. SDLE Applicant Guide 2026, Saudi Commission for Health Specialties
  3. SDLE Applicant Guide, June 2022, Saudi Commission for Health Specialties