THIRTY-EIGHT dangerously overweight patients in Hampshire underwent drastic obesity operations last year.

A total of 17 patients went under the knife to overcome their obesity at Southampton University Hospitals Trust, according to the Department of Health.

Another 21 operations were carried out by Portsmouth Hospitals NHS Trust.

The figures, released by health minister Caroline Flint, include two procedures - "stomach stapling" and gastric bypass operations.

The stapling operation involves using staples or bands to make the stomach smaller and allow food to bypass part of the small intestine where many nutrients are absorbed.

Gastric bypass surgery - costing up to £15,000 an operation - is more complicated and involves dividing the stomach into two pouches and connecting the smaller one to the final segment of the small intestine.

Patients who undergo surgery require lifelong monitoring for potential complications.

Operations are only recommended as a last resort for "morbidly obese" patients - those with a Body Mass Index (BMI) of more than 40. BMI is the result of dividing a patient's weight in kilograms by the square of their height in metres.

Sandra Gidley, Liberal Democrat MP for Romsey, said: "We need to be assured that the operations were a last resort. There is a danger that this operation could become an easy option."

A Department of Health spokes-man said: "The National Institute for Clinical Excellence guidance says clearly that the focus on tackling obesity is on prevention.

"Surgical treatment should be given only after diet, exercise and behavioural approaches have been started and evaluated, ensuring patient-led informed decision making."

Patients in Southampton had to wait on average 17 days for their operations. In Portsmouth the average wait was just 12 days.

The National Audit Office has estimated that obesity costs the NHS at least £500m a year - and the wider economy more than £2 billion a year in lost productivity.