A total of 191 people had weight-loss surgery in HSE hospitals last year, to tackle severe obesity - an increase of 9 per cent from 2021.
They underwent bariatric procedures, which reduce hunger and restrict the amount of food you're able to eat and absorb. It's done when diet and exercise haven't worked or when you have serious health problems because of your weight.
Many Irish patients go abroad, to places like Turkey, to undergo the surgery. But according to figures released under the Freedom of Information Act, 48 men and 143 women had bariatric procedures in HSE hospitals in 2022, costing the State almost €1.8 million.
Maura Murphy, the secretary of the Irish Coalition for People Living with Obesity, lost 10 stone as a result of the surgery in 2012. "I ended up in hospital with something else wrong with me and then the consultant there sent me forward to the weight management clinic in Loughlinstown Hospital in Dublin," she said.
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"I was in my early 50s getting bariatric surgery and I just knew it was my last chance saloon. I was 28 stone and I needed help. I didn't know I was 28 stone because there was no scales to weigh me at that rate.
"So it was a shock when I got to the weight management clinic and found out I was that weight. I was in denial. After the operation, I came down to 18 stone."
11 years later, she remains at the same weight. "I have two tools to keep my weight down," Maura added. "One is the bariatric surgery I had in 2012, and now I am on a weekly medication - an injection that suppresses the appetite, which is absolutely amazing. I am not losing weight, but I am not gaining."
Susie Birney, who's also a member of the coalition, says she lost almost 14 stone as a result of bariatric surgery, which improved her quality of life. "With type 2 diabetes spiralling out of control and retinopathy (eye disease) setting me on a path to possibly going blind, I was advised the gastric bypass would help treat my diabetes," she said.
"I finally had surgery in 2015 and my type 2 diabetes reversed and my retinopathy was gone six months later. This was the outcome most important for me and not the weight loss - I went from 25 stone to 11 stone.
"I do not want to think where I would have ended up if I did not have surgery that year." Susie says she regained over half of the weight she lost, but sought more treatment options and help.
"I am managing my disease with excellent professional support guiding me," she said. "While people may look at me and assume I need to lose weight, my health is monitored annually and I have no alarming concerns to address."
According to Eurostat figures for 2019, Ireland has the third highest number of obese women in the EU, at 26 per cent, and the second highest rate of obese men, at 25.7 per cent. Some 51 women aged between 30 and 44 had bariatric surgery in Ireland last year - which is by far the biggest group.
Beaumont Hospital consultant Bill Tormey says it's an effective treatment for people who are very obese or with health problems linked to their weight. "Successful surgery can reduce excess weight by at least 70 per cent after one year and about 74 per cent in two years and 52 per cent in 10 years," he said.
"Bariatric surgery may be effective for type 2 diabetes. The diabetes may be eliminated or its severity greatly reduced in one third to half of the patients. Overall, bariatric surgery is a great benefit to many patients.
"But I do not recommend medical overseas tourism because of the relatively high incidence of postoperative problems in the experience of many Irish surgeons."
Professor Tormey says there are side-effects to bariatric surgery for some patients. He continued: "These include small bowel obstruction in 3 per cent to 5 per cent with internal hernias being a problem.
"Bowel strangulation and blockage of blood flow to the affected area may occur. Sleeve narrowing may cause cyclic vomiting syndrome with dehydration and difficulty swallowing."
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