A Glasgow surgeon has said that gastric surgery can play a bigger part in the fight against obesity.

Dr Dave Galloway, a consultant surgeon at Gartnavel Hospital, is to tell a conference on obesity that procedures such as gastric band surgery have role to play in tackling the condition.

It has been estimated that 30% of the adult population in Scotland will be clinically obese by 2010.

The event will bring together doctors, nurses, dietitians, psychologists and other health professionals to address the problems of obesity.

Gastric band surgery is the most common procedure in the UK and involves placing an inflatable band around the top of the stomach thereby reducing its capacity.

Dr Galloway said in a statement: "Surgery should not be considered as a first or easy option but for selected patients who have genuinely failed to succeed with conservative measures it is an attractive option.

"Weight control plays a huge part in minimising the risks of other obesity related diseases but for those people who have been unsuccessful in losing weight by other means, such as dieting and exercise, surgery can help."

Patients who are obese often suffer from other health problems including type-2 diabetes, hypertension, coronary artery disease and respiratory disease.

Dr Galloway said: "Gastric band surgery is safe and effective and gives good results. It also has the potential to allow patients with type-2 diabetes to go into remission, reducing the risk of cardiovascular, renal and ophthalmic morbidity which can ensue.

"Some even think that type-2 diabetes should now be considered a `surgical disease' as the best medical treatment can do is little more than manage the progression of a chronic condition whereas surgery could potentially control a large proportion of suitable patients."

Studies have shown that patients who undergo this surgery usually lose between 50%-75% of their excesss body weight.

Naveed Sattar, Professor of Metabolic Medicine at Glasgow University, said: "The benefits of obesity surgery are increasingly apparent and include a 30-40% reduction in mortality, including fewer heart and cancer deaths, as well as improvements in quality of life.

"As the evidence base has improved, there is a perhaps greater incentive to consider surgery in selected patients, especially in those in whom genuine cost and significant quality of life benefits are likely.  However, at the same time as capacity for obesity surgery is inevitably enhanced, more funding must be targeted in helping prevent obesity."