NBDHE Dental Hygienist Practice Test
Take this free NBDHE practice test to study for a dental hygienist certification exam.
Dental hygienists must be licensed in their state to work as a dental hygienist. To get licensed, dental hygienists must meet certain education requirements and pass the National Board Dental Hygiene Examination (NBDHE). The NBDHE Dental Hygienist exam has 350 questions and has two components - Discipline Based section and Dental Hygiene Patient Cases. The first component covers the following main exam sections: Scientific Basis for Dental Hygiene Practice; Provision of Clinical Dental Hygiene Services and Principles of Community Health and Research. The second component of patient cases contains at least one each of geriatric, periodontal, pediatric, special needs and medically compromised patient cases.
For complete practice, check out the NBDHE Practice Exam Kit with 750 questions and fully explained answers, including 20 Patient Case Testlets. It is written by experts and instructors in dental hygiene. Our interactive test platform allows you to simulate the exam. Take as many practice tests as you need. There's no time limit or recurrent charges.
For more information on the NBDHE, see the NBDHE Study Guide.
Abby Altergott, RDH
Licensing of dental hygienists in the U.S. is regulated by the individual states. Currently, all states and the District of Columbia, Puerto Rico, Guam and the Virgin Islands recognize exam results from the National Board of Dental Hygiene Exam (NBDHE). The exam assesses a hygienist’s ability to understand relevant information including basic biomedical, dental and dental hygiene sciences and the ability to apply the information into a problem-solving context.
The NBDHE consists of 350 questions. There are 2 components to the NBDHE:
Discipline-based questions on the following three areas:
- Scientific Basis for Dental Hygiene Practice
- Provision of Clinical Dental Hygiene Services
- Community Health/Research Principles.
Dental Hygiene Patient Cases containing 12-15 patient cases addressing the following knowledge and skill areas:
- Assessing patient characteristics
- Obtaining and interpreting radiographs
- Planning and managing dental hygiene care
- Performing periodontal procedures
- Using preventive agents
- Providing supportive treatment service
- Professional responsibility