Recommended
Books and kit worth buying
Eleven things we would actually put in front of a trainee dental nurse, each tied to a specific unit of the Diploma. Nothing here is on the list because it pays a commission.
Affiliate disclosure: As an Amazon Associate, Med Revision earns from qualifying purchases. Some links on this page are affiliate links — if you buy through them, we may earn a small commission at no extra cost to you. A commission does not buy a place on this list: every title here is one we would point a trainee dental nurse at anyway.
Core Diploma texts
The books the whole qualification is taught from — including the one our own explanations cite.
Levison's Textbook for Dental Nurses, 12th Edition
Carole Hollins' standard textbook for UK dental nurses, covering the whole Diploma from professional practice through to medical emergencies. Wiley Blackwell, 12th edition.
Why we recommend it: This is the book our question bank cites most often — read an explanation on any unit and you will usually see 'Levison's 12th ed' at the end of it. If you buy one book for the Diploma, buy this and check our study guides against it.
Revision Guide for Level 3 Diploma in Dental Nursing
A condensed revision companion covering the Level 3 Diploma syllabus, aimed at candidates preparing for the written assessment.
Why we recommend it: Pairs naturally with our ten unit study guides: read the guide for the unit you are weakest on, then use this to fill in the detail before going back to the quiz.
Questions and Answers for Dental Nurses
A bank of practice questions with worked answers, structured around the topics a trainee dental nurse is assessed on.
Why we recommend it: Retrieval practice is the thing that actually moves your score, and more of it is better. When you have worked through our free questions, this is where to get more of the same kind of practice on paper.
Unit-by-unit deep dives
Wiley's Basic Guide series maps almost one-to-one onto the Diploma units. Pick the one covering your weakest unit.
Basic Guide to Infection Prevention and Control in Dentistry
A focused guide to decontamination, sterilisation and cross-infection control in a dental practice, written for the whole dental team.
Why we recommend it: Infection prevention and decontamination is one of the largest sub-topics in Unit 1, Professional Practice — and the distinction between cleaning, disinfection and sterilisation is exactly what the exam tests. Read this alongside our post on the one-way decontamination flow.
Basic Guide to Dental Materials
Covers the properties, handling and clinical use of the materials a dental nurse mixes, passes and stores.
Why we recommend it: Restorative materials and cavity linings make up a large slice of Unit 6, Treatment Planning, and the questions test the trade-offs between materials rather than their names. This is the book that makes those trade-offs stick.
Basic Guide to Dental Sedation Nursing
A practical guide to conscious sedation in dentistry and the dental nurse's role before, during and after the appointment.
Why we recommend it: Anxiety control, sedation and general anaesthesia sit inside Unit 6, Treatment Planning, and they carry their own consent, monitoring and escort implications. Useful too if you are thinking about the post-registration sedation qualification later.
Basic Guide to Oral Health Education and Promotion, 3rd Edition
Covers plaque and saliva, fluoride, diet and the techniques used to deliver oral health advice that patients actually act on.
Why we recommend it: This maps almost exactly onto Unit 7, Promoting Oral Health — right down to the sub-topics our question bank uses. It is also the natural next step if you go on to take the oral health education qualification.
Anatomy and placement kit
For the parts of the Diploma you learn better with something in your hands than on a page.
Dental Morphology: An Illustrated Guide
An illustrated reference on the form of the individual teeth, their surfaces, and how the dentitions differ.
Why we recommend it: Tooth morphology, surfaces, notation and eruption is one of the biggest sub-topics in Unit 5, Assessment and Diagnosis, and it is a visual subject that pages of prose do badly. The illustrations are the point.
Standard Dental Study Model (adult typodont)
A hinged adult teeth model with a full upper and lower arch, of the kind used for demonstration and teaching.
Why we recommend it: Charting and notation is far easier to learn on an arch you can turn round in your hand than from a diagram. Point at a tooth, name it in the notation, check yourself — then take the Unit 5 quiz and see the difference.
Ravel Classic Easy Read Nurses Fob Watch
A traditional pin-on nurses fob watch with a clear analogue dial and a sweeping second hand.
Why we recommend it: Bare below the elbows is an infection-control rule, not a dress code — which is why a fob watch exists at all. It is also the practical way to time a pulse or a two-minute brushing demonstration. Straight out of Unit 1, Professional Practice.
JFA Medical Pen Torch with Pupil Gauge (6 pack)
Disposable clinical pen torches with a printed pupil gauge along the barrel, supplied in a pack of six.
Why we recommend it: Assessment of the collapsed patient comes up in Unit 10, Risks and Medical Emergencies, and the pupil gauge on the barrel is there for exactly that. Cheap enough that losing one in a scrubs pocket does not matter.
How this list was put together
Every item was checked as in stock on Amazon UK with a live price at the time of writing, and each one is tied to a specific unit of the Diploma rather than added to pad the page out. Prices and availability change — Amazon shows the current ones.
Buying through these links supports the site at no extra cost to you. It does not change what we recommend, and you are under no obligation whatsoever — every study guide here is free to read, and the practice questions are free to answer.
Or start with the free questions
This site publishes the app's free sample. Dental Nurse Exam Revision carries the full bank offline, so you can revise on the bus, between patients, or the night before.
- All 602 questions
- Every question across all 10 units, including the five this site cannot unlock.
- 65-question mock test
- Timed at 90 minutes, mirroring the shape of the real Knowledge Test.
- An explanation every time
- Every answer explains itself and cites where it comes from, right or wrong.
- Progress you can see
- History and per-unit results show which units still need the work.
For iPhone, iPad and Android.
