The HSE said an expert review is being commissioned and an independent panel will be convened to review patient files.

Micheál Martin said there needs to be an ‘exhaustive’ review of unnecessary hip surgeries at two Dublin hospitals.

The HSE chief was commenting following a series of recent controversies involving Children’s Health Ireland.

The children should undergo a standardised independent clinical review and radiological assessment, a report said.

An audit was conducted into a random anonymised sample of patients, aged one to seven years, who were operated on from 2021 to 2023.