D1352 was the CDT code for a preventive resin restoration on a permanent tooth in a moderate-to-high caries-risk patient. The ADA deleted it effective January 1, 2026, so it is no longer billable.
A claim submitted under D1352 on a 2026 date of service will reject. People still search this code, so this page exists to answer the real question: if you used to bill D1352, what do you bill now? The short answer is D2391 for the early-lesion restoration work, or D1351 if what you actually did was a sealant on a sound tooth.
What D1352 used to report
D1352 reported a preventive resin restoration, or PRR, on a permanent tooth in a patient at moderate-to-high caries risk. It sat in the gap between a sealant and a filling.
A sealant, D1351, goes on a sound tooth: no decay, just a coating bonded into intact grooves to keep decay from ever starting. A PRR was for a tooth that already had an early lesion in the pits and fissures. The dentist removed the small amount of affected structure, restored that spot with resin, and typically sealed the remaining sound grooves at the same time. The presence of an actual incipient lesion, plus the elevated caries risk and the permanent-tooth limitation, is what defined the code.
In practice D1352 was the code many offices reached for when a tooth was past a pure sealant but the restoration was minimal, a shallow one-surface composite on a back tooth that didn’t clearly reach dentin.
Why the ADA deleted it
The procedure overlapped with D2391, resin-based composite, one surface, posterior. The two were being performed essentially the same way, but the codes drew an awkward line based on lesion depth.
D2391’s old descriptor limited the code to restorations that penetrated into dentin. That left a gray zone: a shallow one-surface lesion that hadn’t clearly reached dentin didn’t fit cleanly under D2391, so it tended to be reported as D1352. The distinction was hard to apply consistently and created documentation friction.
For 2026 the ADA resolved it by doing two things at once:
- It removed the dentin-depth restriction from D2391. The code now reports a one-surface posterior composite regardless of how deep the lesion goes.
- It deleted D1352, since the work it described now falls under the broadened D2391.
Both changes took effect January 1, 2026. The result is one restorative code for the one-surface posterior composite instead of two codes split by a depth distinction that was difficult to document.
What to bill now
Code by what the clinician actually did.
- Early-lesion restoration on a posterior tooth. This is now D2391 (resin-based composite, one surface, posterior). With the dentin-depth language gone, D2391 covers the one-surface posterior composite at any lesion depth, including the shallow lesions that used to route to D1352. If the restoration spans more than one surface, move up the series: D2392 (two surfaces), D2393 (three), D2394 (four or more).
- Sealant on a sound tooth. If there was no lesion and the procedure was a protective coating on intact grooves, that is D1351 (sealant, per tooth), and it always was. D1352 was never the code for a plain sealant.
The judgment call is the same one that always separated a PRR from a sealant: was there an early lesion that required removing affected structure, or was the tooth sound? If structure was removed and restored, it’s restorative, now D2391. If the tooth was sound and only sealed, it’s preventive, D1351.
Coverage notes for the replacement codes
The plan-dependent rules now follow the code you bill, not the old D1352:
- D2391 is restorative. It is adjudicated against the plan’s restorative benefit, with its own frequency and downgrade rules, and it usually carries patient cost-share where a sealant would not. Moving early-lesion work from a preventive code to a restorative one can change the patient’s out-of-pocket, so set expectations accordingly.
- D1351 is preventive. Most plans that cover sealants restrict them by patient age, by tooth, often permanent molars, and by a per-tooth frequency window. Verify those rules before treatment.
All of this varies by plan. Confirm the specific plan’s restorative and preventive rules rather than assuming the early-lesion restoration will be treated the way D1352 once was.
What to get right in your PMS
- Deactivate D1352 in the code table. On 2026 dates of service it will reject. Removing it from the pick list prevents a clinician or biller from selecting it out of habit.
- Point the old PRR workflow at D2391. Whatever macro, favorite, or template used to drop in D1352 should now drop in D2391 for the early-lesion posterior restoration.
- Keep D1351 distinct. A sealant on a sound tooth is still D1351. Don’t let the D1352 deletion collapse sealants into the restorative code; they are different procedures on different teeth.
- Code to the date of service. A 2025 claim under D1352 is valid for its date. Only 2026-and-later dates require the change. If you are reworking or appealing an older claim, leave its original code intact.
FAQs
- Is D1352 still a valid CDT code in 2026?
- No. D1352, preventive resin restoration in a moderate-to-high caries-risk patient on a permanent tooth, was deleted effective January 1, 2026. A claim that uses D1352 on a 2026 date of service will reject for an invalid or deleted code. If your practice management software still lists D1352 in its code table, remove or deactivate it so it can't be selected by mistake.
- What do I bill instead of D1352 now?
- It depends on what was actually done. If the dentist restored an early carious lesion on a posterior tooth, that is now D2391 (resin-based composite, one surface, posterior). The ADA revised D2391 at the same time it deleted D1352, dropping the language that had limited D2391 to lesions reaching dentin, so D2391 now reports a one-surface posterior composite regardless of lesion depth. If what was actually placed was a sealant on a sound, decay-free tooth, that is D1351 (sealant, per tooth). Code by what the clinician did, not by the old D1352 habit.
- Why did the ADA delete D1352?
- Because the procedure overlapped with D2391. D1352 and a one-surface posterior composite were being done essentially the same way, but D2391's old descriptor limited it to lesions that penetrated into dentin, which created a gray zone for shallow lesions. The ADA removed the dentin-depth restriction from D2391 and deleted D1352, so a single restorative code now covers the one-surface posterior composite regardless of how deep the lesion goes. The change took effect January 1, 2026.
- What was the difference between D1352 and a sealant?
- A sealant, D1351, goes on a sound tooth with no decay. It is purely preventive, a coating bonded into intact pits and grooves to stop decay from starting. D1352 was a step beyond that: a preventive resin restoration on a permanent tooth where there was an early or incipient lesion in the grooves, so the dentist removed a small amount of affected structure and restored it, often combined with sealing the remaining grooves. The presence of an actual early lesion is what separated D1352 from a plain sealant.
- I have an old claim with a 2025 date of service under D1352. Is that a problem?
- No. A code's deletion applies to dates of service on or after the effective date. D1352 was valid through December 31, 2025, so a 2025 date of service billed under D1352 is correct and can still be processed or appealed on its original terms. The deletion only blocks D1352 on dates of service from January 1, 2026 forward. Code each claim to the CDT version in effect on its date of service.
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CDT codes are maintained by the American Dental Association. This page is an editorial billing guide, not the official ADA code descriptor. Verify current coverage policies with each carrier before submitting claims.