Free DHA Periodontics mock test
12 original exam-style questions from our Periodontics bank, timed at the exam’s own pace, scored against the 60% DHA pass mark. They span 7 of the 8 blueprint domains, so you will see exactly where you are weakest - free, no sign-up.
Sit 12 original exam-style questions at real exam pace
These are 12 original questions taken from our Periodontics bank, spread across 7 of the 8 domains of the published blueprint. You get 72 seconds per question, which is exactly the pace of the real PER5131 exam (14 minutes for 12). At the end you will see which domains you are weakest in, and the full worked reasoning for every question.
- 12
- questions
- 14:24
- time limit
- 60%
- DHA pass mark
A short diagnostic cannot predict whether you will pass - only the real exam does that. It will show you, honestly, where you currently stand.
What the real Periodontics licensing exam looks like
Candidates for a Periodontics licence in the UAE sit a computer-based multiple-choice examination - DHA exam code PER5131, delivered through Prometric for DHA, MOHAP and SHA, and through Pearson VUE for DOH Abu Dhabi. The DHA pass mark is 60% (DHA CBT Guideline, Sep 2026); other authorities set their own, so confirm yours before booking. The result is reported to you as pass or fail only - your score is never released.
Pass marks at a glance: DHA exam codes and pass marks for all written exams in one sourced table.
The paper is built to a published blueprint, which is why a domain-by-domain diagnostic is more useful than a raw percentage. Your questions above were drawn from across Classification and Diagnosis, Mucogingival Conditions and Acute Lesions, Peri-Implant Diseases and Implant Therapy, Periodontal Anatomy, Microbiology and Host Response and 3 more - the same areas the real paper weights.
Before you can book the exam at all you need Dataflow primary source verification of your degree, licence and experience, which typically runs several weeks. Candidates routinely underestimate this and end up sitting the exam sooner after study than they planned. Check where you stand with our free eligibility checker or confirm whether your title even requires an exam using the Prometric exam checker.
You get three attempts in total across all UAE authorities - not three each - under the Unified Professional Qualification Requirements. At roughly AED 1,030 per attempt, plus the licensing delay each failure adds to your visa and start date, the cost of going in underprepared is not really the exam fee.
What is on the Periodontics exam: the full blueprint
The published blueprint splits into 8 domains and 50 testable sub-topics. The diagnostic above samples across them, which is why its breakdown maps onto the structure the real paper is built from.
- Classification and Diagnosis~16%7 topics
- Periodontal Anatomy, Microbiology and Host Response~12%6 topics
- Non-Surgical Therapy and Pharmacotherapy~14%7 topics
- Periodontal Surgery and Regeneration~14%6 topics
- Peri-Implant Diseases and Implant Therapy~12%6 topics
- Periodontal-Systemic Interactions~10%6 topics
- Mucogingival Conditions and Acute Lesions~10%6 topics
- Supportive Care, Infection Control and Ethics~12%6 topics
- Questions
- 150 multiple-choice (DHA PER5131)
- Duration
- 3 hours, including registration
- DHA pass mark
- 60% - reported as pass or fail only
Figures for the DHA exam, from the DHA CBT Guideline, Sep 2026. DOH, MOHAP, SCFHS, QCHP, NHRA and OMSB set their own length, timing and pass mark. See the DHA exam guide and pass marks for every DHA exam.
A worked Periodontics exam question
Every question in the diagnostic and in the paid bank is written to this standard: a clinical stem, four plausible options and the reasoning for the answer, with its source.
Classification and Diagnosis
A 17-year-old has deep pockets and bone loss limited to the first molars and incisors. How is this pattern described in the 2017 classification?
- ALocalised aggressive periodontitis (LAP)
- BNecrotising periodontitis
- CSlight chronic periodontitis, localised
- DPeriodontitis with a molar-incisor patternCorrect
Why: The 2017 classification dropped the aggressive and chronic categories; this presentation is described as periodontitis with a molar-incisor pattern, with stage and grade added. 'Localised aggressive periodontitis' is the older 1999 term.
Source: Papapanou PN, et al. J Periodontol 2018 (2017 World Workshop)
Periodontics sample questions with answers
4 more original exam-style Periodontics questions, worked in full. They are not real or recalled exam questions, and none of them is in the diagnostic above, so sit that first if you have not.
Question 1 · Classification and Diagnosis
A patient with Stage III periodontitis and a calculated Grade B smokes 15 cigarettes a day. How does smoking affect the grade?
- ALeaves it at Grade B
- BLowers it to Grade A
- CRaises it to Grade C
- DRaises it to Stage IV
Show answer and explanation
Correct answer: C. Raises it to Grade C
Smoking 10 or more cigarettes a day is a grade modifier that shifts the grade to C. Risk factors affect grade, not stage, so changing the stage is wrong.
Reference: Tonetti MS, Greenwell H, Kornman KS. J Periodontol 2018
Question 2 · Mucogingival Conditions and Acute Lesions
A lower canine has 4 mm of buccal gingival recession and no loss of interproximal attachment. What is its Cairo classification and expected outcome?
- ART2; partial root coverage is expected
- BRT1; complete root coverage is predictable
- CRT3; root coverage is not achievable
- DRT1; root coverage is not achievable
Show answer and explanation
Correct answer: B. RT1; complete root coverage is predictable
Cairo RT1 recession has no interproximal attachment loss, and full root coverage can be predictably achieved. RT2 has interproximal loss no greater than the buccal loss and RT3 has interproximal loss greater than buccal loss, with lower predictability.
Reference: Cairo F, et al. J Clin Periodontol 2011
Question 3 · Non-Surgical Therapy and Pharmacotherapy
A 26-year-old has generalised Stage III Grade C periodontitis. Which adjunctive systemic antibiotic regimen is most widely studied with subgingival instrumentation?
- APenicillin V alone for 3 days
- BClindamycin for 1 day
- CAzithromycin once monthly for twelve months
- DAmoxicillin plus metronidazole for 7 days
Show answer and explanation
Correct answer: D. Amoxicillin plus metronidazole for 7 days
Amoxicillin combined with metronidazole for about 7 days is the most studied adjunct and may be considered for specific groups such as young adults with generalised Stage III periodontitis. Routine antibiotic use is not recommended because of resistance concerns.
Reference: Sanz M, et al. EFP S3 Level Clinical Practice Guideline, J Clin Periodontol 2020
Question 4 · Non-Surgical Therapy and Pharmacotherapy
Which Gracey curette is designed for the mesial surfaces of posterior teeth?
- AGracey 13/14
- BGracey 1/2
- CGracey 11/12
- DGracey 7/8
Show answer and explanation
Correct answer: C. Gracey 11/12
Gracey 11/12 is designed for mesial posterior surfaces and 13/14 for distal posterior surfaces. Gracey 1/2 is for anterior teeth and 7/8 for posterior facial and lingual surfaces.
Reference: Wilkins' Clinical Practice of the Dental Hygienist, 13th ed.
How to use this diagnostic properly
- 1Sit it cold, once. Do not look anything up. A diagnostic you help yourself through tells you nothing. The number you get is only useful if it is honest.
- 2Read every rationale - especially the ones you got right. Getting a question right by elimination is not the same as knowing it. The worked reasoning is free above, whether or not you buy anything.
- 3Work weakest domain first. The breakdown orders your domains worst-first for exactly this reason. Studying what you are already good at feels productive and moves nothing.
- 4Re-sit under full exam conditions later. The real paper is far longer than this and stamina matters. Full-length timed papers are what the paid bank is for.