Oral health detection is closely related to people's lives.Existing methods for oral health examination have limitations such as X-ray radiation and the need for professional operation, making it difficult to apply to large-scale population screening.With the advancement of optical technologies, techniques like near-infrared imaging can more easily and accurately detect oral health conditions. It summarizes the detection of dental caries and demineralization using near-infrared light and optical coherence omography (OCT), demineralization and dental plaque detection using fluorescence, research progress on demineralization using Raman spectroscopy, and the application of multispectral endoscopy in dentistry.It discusses the advantages and disadvantages of infrared, OCT, fluorescence, Raman, and endoscopy in oral health detection, as well as providing an outlook on the development of optical instruments for oral examination.