Dental OSCE (Objective Structured Clinical Examination) Practice Exam

Disable ads (and more) with a membership for a one time $2.99 payment

Prepare for the Dental OSCE Exam with comprehensive questions and interactive study tools. Enhance your clinical skills and knowledge with detailed explanations and scenarios. Achieve exam success and bolster your dental career!

Each practice test/flash card set has 50 randomly selected questions from a bank of over 500. You'll get a new set of questions each time!

Practice this question and more.


Which action should you take first when attempting to match tooth shade?

  1. Use a shade guide

  2. Apply a bonding agent

  3. Polish the tooth surface

  4. Remove existing dental work

The correct answer is: Polish the tooth surface

When attempting to match tooth shade, the first action should be to use a shade guide. This is the most reliable method for assessing the color of the natural teeth and ensuring that any restorations blend seamlessly with them. A shade guide provides a standardized reference for comparison, which is essential for achieving the desired aesthetic outcome in dental restorations. Utilizing a shade guide allows dental professionals to evaluate the tooth shade in a controlled manner, considering factors such as lighting and surface texture. Proper shade matching is crucial for patients, as they expect restorations to mimic the natural appearance of their teeth. While polishing the tooth surface can improve the accuracy of shade matching to some extent by removing surface stains and debris, it should not be the first step. Also, applying a bonding agent or removing existing dental work would only come into play after the shade has been determined for restorations, not as a prerequisite for matching shades.