Date published: 01.09.08 - not release date

OVER 60S WEIGH-IN FOR WEIGHT LOSS SURGERY

TV’s X-Factor judge Sharon Osbourne is boosting the popularity of weight-loss surgery for older women.

Latest figures from private hospital group Spire Healthcare show the number of over 60s having gastric banding and gastric bypass surgery has doubled in the last year.

Spire Healthcare’s director of clinical services Doctor Jean-Jacques de Gorter said: "There's now much more awareness that you can have surgery to tackle obesity and with people like Sharon Osbourne openly talking about her gastric banding op, people can see that it works."

Overall weight loss surgery has increased by 58 percent in the last year at Spire’s 25 UK hospitals and while the procedures are more popular with women, the biggest increase has been among men.

Spire Healthcare has also seen calls to its inquiry line double in the last year with nearly 3,000 people calling to find out more about weight-loss procedures. Most of the calls have come from people seeing information on Spire’s website: www.spirehealthcare.com/weightloss

Gastric bypass surgery involves the surgeon using the upper part of the stomach to create a pouch. A section of small intestine is removed and the shorter small intestine is re-connected to the pouch, the result is that food bypasses part of the digestive system and is less-easily absorbed into the body.

In the more popular gastric banding procedure the size of the stomach is reduced using an adjustable band so that only small meals can be eaten and you feel fuller quicker.

"Weight loss surgery is generally for people with a Body Mass Index of 40 or over who have tried other methods to lose weight but have failed and who are fit enough to undergo surgery. As with all surgery there's some risk and our nurses, psychologists and dieticians are there to ensure patients get the most comprehensive follow up care," said Doctor de Gorter.

A recent study in the Lancet showed that weight loss surgery could be more effective in saving the lives of obese people than other slimming methods. The study’s authors said: "There's good evidence to show that bariatric surgery is more effective than non-surgical approaches in the therapy of morbid obesity."

Patients at 25 Spire Healthcare hospitals - Percentage increase 2006-2007

All weight loss procedures - 58 percent
All male weight loss procedures - 79 percent
All female weight loss procedures - 55 percent
18-29 year-olds - 63 percent
30-44 year-olds - 51 percent
45-59 year-olds - 63 percent
60+ year-olds - 100 percent


For more info contact:

Lydia Aydon
Spire Healthcare
Tel: 020 7656 2129
Email: Lydia.aydon@spirehealthcare.com

Notes to editors:

Spire Healthcare is one of the leading independent hospital providers in the UK, with a 25 year heritage of customer service and clinical excellence. It was formed this year from the sale of BUPA Hospitals to leading private equity company Cinven.

Spire Healthcare has 25 hospitals across the UK, providing services for private and insured patients as well as NHS funded patients under the government’s Choose and Book scheme. It also offers cosmetic and weight-loss surgery.

Its hospitals carry out more than 160,000 in-patient and day-case treatments a year and work with over 3,000 consultants. It is proud to be the 1st independent hospital group to publish clinical outcome data.