An NHS dentist who performed a sex act while his patient lay unconscious in his chair has been warned he is facing jail.

Lee Gaukrodger's 32-year-old victim, who cannot be named, was having a tooth extraction. When she came round from the anaesthetic, she found her hair was wet.

The South African-born dentist said he had spilt fluid on her during the procedure and was dabbing the liquid with a tissue.

But Newcastle Crown Court heard how the fluid was semen.

The incident happened at Scrafton, Bond and Ablett, in Flatt Court, South Shields, South Tyneside, on July 19 when a dental nurse had left the room.

Gaukrodger, 29, of Kingsley Avenue, Gosforth, Newcastle, yesterday admitted a charge of sexual assault in relation to the masturbation. He denied a charge of sexual assault in relation to deliberately touching her breasts but accepted "reckless" touching.

His barrister, Paul Caulfield, told the court yesterday: "This is a very, very unusual case, a registered dental surgeon who has behaved in a bizarre fashion."

Gaukrodger will be sentenced in January.