A NORTH-EAST hospital trust has set up a helpline for patients after officials confirmed that it carried out more controversial PIP breast implants than any other NHS trust in England.

Officials at County Durham and Darlington NHS Foundation Trust confirmed last night that its surgeons had implanted a total of 638 of the potentially faulty PIP breast implants into 412 women.

The operations were carried out between 2001 and 2007, when they were discontinued due to growing concerns about the reliability of the Frenchmade implants.

More than 40,000 women in the UK have PIP implants, which are filled with industrial- grade silicone.

Reports that some PIP implants have ruptured and leaked silicone has caused widespread concern, but the NHS is advising women that they do not need to have them removed unless they have symptoms such as pain or tenderness.

Most were implanted in private hospitals and clinics but the County Durham trust used far more PIP implants than any NHS trust in England.

The only other NHS trust to put in more than a small number is another North-East trust – North Tees and Hartlepool – where 13 women had PIP implants put in between 2001 and 2007.

Angela Murphy, 63, from Framwellgate Moor, Durham City, who is waiting to have her PIP implants removed at the trust, said: “This is amazing. I would love to know who made the decision to put all their eggs in one basket. It must be down to price.”

A spokeswoman for the County Durham and Darlington trust, which runs hospitals in Darlington, Durham City and Bishop Auckland, said it had received more than 200 calls since the help line was set up last week.

The spokeswoman said: “Four hundred and twelve women were implanted with the PIP product by the trust, and we wrote to them last August to inform them of the Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency guidance on safety.

“Although there is no clear evidence to suggest that the PIP gel implants are unsafe or that there is any health risk associated with the implants, we understand that some patients may be worried or have concerns.

“Therefore, we wrote to them again last week to update them on the most recent Department of Health guidance, and informing them of how we will be managing patients locally.

We have also set up an advice line for those who are worried or would like to find out what kind of implants they do have.”

The trust is advising patients to seek further advice from their GP who will be able to make a referral to a plastic surgeon for specialist assessment.

The helpline is 0800-7835774.