VistA Dentistry is the dental records package of VistA, the electronic health record system of the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs (VA). It is used by dental services in VA medical centres, where clinicians work in Dental Record Manager Plus (DRM Plus), a Windows program opened from the CPRS clinical record, to enter diagnostic findings and treatment procedures for veterans. If you searched for “vista dental” and expected a dental clinic of that name, this page is not about a practice: it covers the VA software sometimes called “VistA Dental”.
Be realistic about who can use it. The server side, the Dentistry package with the namespace DENT, is written in M (MUMPS) and is part of VistA code released to the public through the Freedom of Information Act. The clinician interface, DRM Plus, is a commercial off-the-shelf product from Document Storage Systems, Inc. (DSS), which the VA licenses. There is no installer for a private dental office, and VA medical centres that have moved to the Oracle Health (Cerner) record use a different tool, eDRM, instead. The package itself is current: version 1.2 receives regular patches, the latest being DENT*1.2*93 from February 2026.
VistA Dentistry at a glance
| Item | Details |
|---|---|
| Latest version | Dentistry 1.2, patch DENT*1.2*93 (documentation posted 23 February 2026) |
| Licence | VistA M code: U.S. government software, public domain through FOIA. DRM Plus client: proprietary product of DSS, licensed to the VA |
| Platforms | VistA server (M database) plus a Windows DRM Plus client launched from CPRS; the VA technology reference lists Microsoft SQL Server for DRM Plus data |
| Developer | U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs (Office of Information and Technology); DRM Plus by Document Storage Systems, Inc. |
| Official website | va.gov/vdl (VA Software Document Library, Dentistry section) |
| Best for | VA dental services and VistA developers or researchers; not private dental practices |
What it does
- Stores dental patient data in VistA files, including dental patient, dental provider, dental classification, site parameters and canned comments.
- Records dental treatment and workload for the VA’s management reporting (AMIS files), plus fee-basis dental care and dental personnel data.
- Tracks non-clinical time of dental staff.
- DRM Plus gives clinicians a graphical interface to enter diagnostic findings and treatment procedures into VistA as single-point data entry.
- Creates progress note text for CPRS and supports CPRS templates inside DRM Plus.
- Provides Speed Codes for frequently used entries and Device Tracking, whose details appear in progress notes.
- Keeps the ADA procedure code set current: patch 92 added ten new codes (such as D2956 and D6180) and patch 93 added 31 new codes and edited or inactivated others.
How dental teams use it
Document a dental visit in a VA clinic
- Open the veteran’s record in CPRS; DRM Plus can only be started from CPRS.
- Launch DRM Plus and enter the diagnostic findings and the procedures performed, using Speed Codes where the clinic has set them up.
- Record device details in Device Tracking where the procedure requires it.
- Complete the progress note, which is filed back to the CPRS record.
Install the yearly code updates (VA IT staff)
- Check the patch in the National Patch Module on FORUM and its prerequisites (patch 93 builds on the earlier DENT patches).
- Install the KIDS build on a fully patched VistA system after backing up the affected globals, as the installation guide describes.
- Deploy the updated DRM Plus executable to client PCs when the patch includes one.
- Skip the patch at sites running eDRM on Oracle Health; the VA guides say those sites should not install it.
Study the package outside the VA
- Browse the Dental package in the WorldVistA VistA-M repository on GitHub, which holds the FOIA M routines and globals.
- Use the ViViaN documentation site to see its files, options and remote procedures (it lists 57 options and 92 RPCs).
- Remember that without DRM Plus you only get the server logic and terminal menu options, not the clinician interface.
Install and first run
- Inside the VA: patches are released through FORUM to all VA medical centres. Each patch comes with release notes, an installation guide, a technical manual and a deployment, installation, backout and rollback guide, all on the VA Software Document Library.
- Components: a patch can contain a KIDS build (M routines), the DRM Plus executable, or both; backout instructions differ accordingly.
- Support: DRM Plus is a vendor-supported product, and the VA guides direct sites to DSS technical support for backouts.
- Outside the VA: the M code can be loaded into a FOIA-based VistA system, but running VistA requires M database and VistA administration skills, and the DRM Plus client is not part of the public-domain release.
- No desktop installer: there is no stand-alone “VistA Dental” program for Windows, Linux or macOS.
Limitations
- Built for VA dental services and VA reporting, not for private practice billing or insurance claims.
- The usable clinician interface (DRM Plus) is proprietary and licensed by the VA, so the full system is not free for outside users.
- Requires a full VistA environment with CPRS; it cannot run on its own.
- The DRM Plus client runs on Windows only.
- Sites moving to Oracle Health switch to eDRM, so the package’s future depends on the VA’s record modernisation.
- We could not confirm details of its graphical tooth charting from the public documents, so we do not describe it here.
VistA Dentistry vs alternatives
For a private dental office, Open Dental (commercial dental practice management software with a trial version) and ClearDent (commercial software for Canadian dental practices) are the practical choices, because they run on ordinary office computers or as hosted systems and include charting, scheduling and billing. For a hospital outside the VA that wants a free, open-source system with a dental clinic as one department, OpenClinic GA is easier to deploy than VistA, although it has no tooth chart.
FAQ
Is this page about the Vista Dental clinics?
No. Many dental offices use the name “Vista Dental”. This page covers the VA’s VistA Dentistry software and its DRM Plus interface.
Can I download VistA Dentistry?
The M code is part of the public-domain VistA release and its documentation is on the VA Software Document Library, but there is no stand-alone installer, and the DRM Plus client is a licensed commercial product.
Is VistA Dentistry free?
The VistA M code is public domain. The DRM Plus interface used by VA clinicians is proprietary software from DSS, so a complete working system is not free for outside users.
Can a private dental practice use VistA Dentistry?
Not realistically. It needs a full VistA and CPRS environment and the licensed DRM Plus client, and it is designed around VA workflows and reporting.
What is DRM Plus?
Dental Record Manager Plus is the Windows interface that lets VA dental staff enter findings and procedures into VistA. It is developed by Document Storage Systems and opened from CPRS.
What is the latest version of VistA Dentistry?
Version 1.2 with patch DENT*1.2*93, documented in February 2026, which updated the ADA procedure codes.
What do VA sites on Oracle Health use?
They use eDRM, and the VA’s patch guides tell those sites not to install the DRM Plus updates.
Last checked against official sources: 28 September 2026 (developer website: va.gov). Versions and licence terms change — confirm on the developer's site before deploying in a clinic.
