A new test to check the standard of gold inlays used by dentists in England and Wales has been developed by the NHS Counter Fraud Service (CFS) and the AMTAC group.

The non-invasive test takes a sample of the patients' gold inlay which is then sent to AMTAC's laboratories.

A series of checks are made to determine whether the content of gold in the inlays meets the NHS standards. The findings are then sent to the NHS CFS Dental Fraud Team (DFT) and if necessary investigated.

The test was designed after recent investigations by the DFT uncovered the suspected use of cheap materials for gold inlays by dentists who then claimed back the full amount from the Dental Practice Board.

The NHS Counter Fraud Service claimed that the AMTAC test was an important development in countering the fraudulent use of inferior materials by a minority of dentists.

The NHS Statement of Dental Remuneration stipulates that dentists must use 60 per cent gold when giving patients inlays. In recent investigations by the DFT, some patients' inlays contained only two per cent gold.