The right code, the right documentation, every claim

How CDT is organized

The 12 CDT categories of service

The Code on Dental Procedures and Nomenclature (CDT) is the HIPAA standard code set used to report dental procedures. It is maintained by the American Dental Association and updated each January 1. Use the current CDT manual and payer policy before submitting claims.

Range	Category
D0100–D0999	Diagnostic
D1000–D1999	Preventive
D2000–D2999	Restorative
D3000–D3999	Endodontics
D4000–D4999	Periodontics
D5000–D5899	Removable prosthodontics
D5900–D5999	Maxillofacial prosthetics
D6000–D6199	Implant services
D6200–D6999	Fixed prosthodontics
D7000–D7999	Oral and maxillofacial surgery
D8000–D8999	Orthodontics
D9000–D9999	Adjunctive general services

Preventive

Preventive and diagnostic: high volume, high frequency risk

Small coding errors on routine services can create repeat denials across hundreds of claims. Focus on eligibility, frequency limits, age or dentition rules, and documentation before the claim is sent.

Common preventive and diagnostic codes

Code	What it reports	Billing note
D0120 / D0150 / D0180	Periodic, comprehensive, and comprehensive periodontal evaluations	Frequencies are plan-specific. For periodontal evaluations, keep periodontal charting and risk findings in the record.
D0210 / D0274 / D0330	Complete intraoral image series, four bitewings, and panoramic image	Do not substitute a panoramic image plus bitewings for a complete intraoral series unless the code and payer policy support it.
D1110 / D1120	Prophylaxis for adult or child dentition	CDT is dentition-based; many plans also apply age edits. Verify before treatment when coverage is uncertain.
D1206 / D1208	Fluoride varnish or other topical fluoride	Coverage often depends on age, caries risk, benefit frequency, or medical necessity language.
D1351	Sealant, reported per tooth	Confirm tooth eligibility and history. ADA News reported D1352 among deleted CDT codes for 2026; review current guidance for preventive resin or conservative restorative alternatives.
D4910	Periodontal maintenance after active periodontal therapy	Support with perio history, charting, diagnosis, and interval. Plans vary on how D4910 interacts with prophylaxis frequency.

Restorative

Basic restorative: surfaces and location decide the code

For restorative claims, the most common problems are wrong surface count, anterior versus posterior confusion, missing radiographs, and narratives that do not support the billed procedure.

Common restorative, endodontic and periodontal codes

Code	What it reports	Billing note
D2140 · D2150 · D2160 · D2161	Amalgam restoration by number of surfaces	Bill the surfaces restored, not every surface affected by decay or fracture.
D2330 · D2331 · D2332 · D2335	Anterior resin restoration by surface count, including incisal angle situations	Use tooth number, surfaces, and clinical notes to support the anterior code selected.
D2391 · D2392 · D2393 · D2394	Posterior resin restoration by number of surfaces	Many plans apply alternate benefits. Document material, surfaces, tooth number, and reason for treatment.
D2950 / D2954	Core build-up or prefabricated post and core	The narrative should explain why retention was needed and why the service was separate from the final restoration.
D3310 · D3320 · D3330	Root canal therapy for anterior, premolar, or molar teeth	Tooth number drives the code. Attach pre-op and post-op images when required by the plan.
D4341 / D4342	Scaling and root planing by quadrant, based on number of involved teeth	Periodontal charting, bleeding, calculus, bone loss, and radiographs should support medical necessity.

Major

Major services: material and documentation drive payment

High-dollar claims need clean coding, consistent chart notes, accurate materials, and attachments that match the narrative. Pre-treatment estimates can reduce surprises, but they are not a guarantee of payment.

Common major-service codes

Code	What it reports	Billing note
D2740	Porcelain or ceramic crown	Commonly used for all-ceramic crowns, including zirconia. Keep the lab invoice and material information consistent with the claim.
D2750 · D2751 · D2752	Porcelain-fused-to-metal crowns by metal type	The metal category on the claim should match the lab documentation.
D2790 · D2791 · D2792	Full-cast crowns by metal type	Document the material, tooth condition, and clinical reason for full coverage.
D6010	Surgical placement of an endosteal implant body	Implant coverage is plan-specific and may be excluded, limited, or subject to alternate benefits.
D6058 · D6065	Implant-related crowns, selected by support and attachment method	Choose the code based on how the crown is supported and retained, not simply because an implant is present.
D7140 / D7210	Routine removal of an erupted tooth or surgical removal requiring additional surgical steps	D7210 needs documentation of the surgical approach, such as bone removal, sectioning, or flap access when applicable.
D7220 · D7230 · D7240	Removal of impacted teeth by impaction level	Radiographs and the operative note should support the impaction classification.
D8070 · D8080 · D8090	Comprehensive orthodontic treatment by dentition stage	Verify age limits, lifetime maximums, waiting periods, continuation-of-care rules, and required orthodontic records.

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Our coding service

How Dental Billing Community helps

Dental Billing Community supports dental practices and DSOs nationwide with coding-aware revenue cycle workflows, from verification through payment posting and denial follow-up.

Pre-submission claim review

We check claims against the chart note, tooth number, surfaces, attachments, benefits, and payer rules before submission to reduce preventable denials.

Provider and team coaching

Your team gets short, specific feedback when documentation does not support the code, so the issue can be fixed at the source.

Annual CDT update support

We help update PMS code lists, claim-scrub rules, narratives, and billing workflows as CDT changes take effect each January 1.

Dental-to-medical billing support

When a service may belong on a medical claim, we support CPT, HCPCS, and ICD-10-CM workflows, with experienced billers reviewing AI-assisted work.

Why Dental Billing Community

Why dental practices choose us

Six reasons practices across the US hand us their revenue cycle.

01

Dental-first specialists

Our team works only in dental revenue cycle — CDT, dental plans, Medicaid dental and the payers your practice actually bills.

02

Dental and medical billing

We bill the medical plan when it should pay — oral surgery, trauma, biopsies, TMD and oral appliance therapy — with compliant cross-coding.

03

AI-assisted, human-checked

Automation speeds verification, scrubbing and follow-up; experienced billers review every exception.

04

Transparent results

Monthly KPI reviews plus live verification and AR dashboards. You always see where every claim stands.

05

HIPAA-first operations

BAA with every client, named logins, MFA where supported and minimum-necessary access.

06

One team, full cycle

Verification, coding, claims, AR, denials, posting, patient billing and credentialing — no hand-offs between vendors.

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Sources & further reading

1. ADA — CDT: Code on Dental Procedures and Nomenclature
2. ADA News — Deleted CDT codes for 2026

Educational content only — not legal, coding-certification or payer-specific advice. Code sets, including CDT, CPT, ICD-10-CM and HCPCS, and payer policies change; always confirm against the current code manual and the patient’s plan. Dental Billing Community provides HIPAA-compliant billing support with a BAA for every client and offers a free billing assessment. CDT is © American Dental Association. CPT is © American Medical Association.