This DANB RHS cheat sheet compresses the Radiation Health and Safety exam into a printable rundown of the facts the test hits hardest, weighted to the official 50/25/25 blueprint. It's a premium cheat sheet built by Capital Prep — the one premium prep we trust — and it's yours free. Pair it with the rest of your free RHS toolkit: the practice test, study guide, and flashcards.
DANB RHS exam at a glance
- Certifying body: DANB (Dental Assisting National Board)
- Questions: 75 scored, multiple-choice (computer-adaptive)
- Time: 60 minutes
- Passing score: Scaled 400 on a 100–900 range
- Scope: Digital radiography only (since July 7, 2022)
- Counts toward: CDA and NELDA credentials
- Cost: About $250 (dated anchor; verify on danb.org, as military and state rates differ)
What’s on the DANB RHS cheat sheet
- Purpose and Technique (50%) — image types and their purpose, paralleling vs. bisecting, correcting elongation/foreshortening/overlap/cone cut, mounting with the embossed dot, and Universal tooth numbering.
- Radiation Characteristics and Protection (25%) — kVp vs. mAs, radiation biology, dose units, ALARA, the inverse-square law, collimation, filtration, and patient plus operator shielding.
- Infection Prevention and Control (25%) — standard precautions during imaging, PPE, surface barriers, Spaulding classification, and handling digital sensors and PSP plates.
How to use it in your final week
- Front-load Purpose and Technique — it is 50% of the exam. Lock in which image answers which clinical question (bitewing = interproximal caries and bone height; periapical = whole tooth plus apex; no thyroid collar on panoramic).
- Burn in the angulation-error hooks: too FLAT = too LONG (elongation), too STEEP = too SHORT (foreshortening), bad horizontal angle = overlap, off-center PID = cone cut. Every retake doubles patient dose.
- Rehearse the safety numbers — inverse-square law (double the distance, one-fourth the intensity), operator ≥ 6 ft at 90–135° to the beam, whole-body MPD 50 mSv (5 rem)/yr, and 1 Gy = 100 rad, 1 Sv = 100 rem.
- Read the sheet the morning of the test, then take one timed 75-question practice set to confirm you are clearing the 400 scaled-score mark with room to spare.
The cheat sheet is your review layer — your DANB RHS practice test drives the exam-readiness ring at the top of this page. Download it, review, then take a full practice exam (or drill with the study guide and flashcards) to see where you stand.
DANB RHS cheat sheet FAQ
Yes — the DANB RHS cheat sheet downloads as a PDF for free, with no sign-up and no account. It sits alongside Career Employer's free RHS practice test, study guide, and flashcards, so your whole prep stack costs nothing.
It condenses the three official RHS domains onto a single quick-reference: Purpose and Technique (50%), Radiation Characteristics and Protection (25%), and Infection Prevention and Control (25%). Think image types, paralleling versus bisecting, angulation-error fixes, ALARA, dose units, and barrier technique for digital receptors.
The RHS exam is scored on a scaled 100 to 900 range, and you need a scaled score of 400 or higher to pass. Because it is computer-adaptive, your result reflects the difficulty of the items you answer correctly, not a raw percent-correct — so aim for a comfortable buffer above 400.
No — and neither does the exam anymore. Since July 7, 2022 the RHS tests digital radiography only, so the sheet focuses on CCD/CMOS sensors and PSP plates rather than film chemistry or darkroom processing.
Tap the download button or the preview card near the top of this page and the PDF opens instantly. Bookmark the page so you can pull it up for a final review in the days before your test.
References
- 1.Dental Assisting National Board (DANB). “Radiation Health and Safety (RHS) Exam — Overview, Format & Exam Outline.” danb.org, 2026. ↑
- 2.Dental Assisting National Board (DANB). “RHS Exam Outline and References (effective March 12, 2025).” danb.org, 2025. ↑
- 3.Dental Assisting National Board (DANB). “4 Important Details to Know About DANB Exams (computer-adaptive; scaled 100–900; 400 to pass).” danb.org, 2026. ↑
- 4.American Dental Association (ADA) / U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA). “Dental Radiographic Examinations: Recommendations for Patient Selection and Limiting Radiation Exposure.” ADA / FDA, 2026. ↑
- 5.Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). “Summary of Infection Prevention Practices in Dental Settings.” cdc.gov, 2026. ↑
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