More than 2500 patients are on the waiting list for elective surgeries at the Wagga Base Hospital.

Almost 800 people of those waiting require orthopaedic surgery, according to the Bureau of Health Information's latest data from the October to December 2018 period.

This type of surgery focuses on the musculoskeletal system such as bones, joints, ligaments, tendons, muscles and nerves.

A common orthopaedic procedure could include an arthroscopy.

The demand for orthopaedic operations at the hospital has increased by 104 patients in comparison to the previous October to December quarter in 2017.

Ophthalmology was also a procedure in high demand with 540 patients on the hospital's waiting list.

Ophthalmology procedures involve the treatment of eye disorders.

Ear, nose and throat procedures, which has 516 people waiting, general surgery, which has 489, and cataract extraction, 459, are also included in the top five elective surgeries that the city's patients were needing at the end of last year.

Wagga Base Hospital director Helen Cooper said the period saw a rise in elective surgeries at public hospitals in the Murrumbidgee Local Health District. She said there was a 3.3 per cent increase in the number of procedures performed in this period.

However, she said 97.8 per cent of procedures were performed on time.

In other news:

The Bureau of Health Information showed the average waiting time for non-urgent elective surgeries at the hospital was 86 days above the state average of 222 days.

The latest statistics showed that only nine patients on the list waited more than 12 months by the end of December 31.

"The average wait times can be higher than the state average in some specialties due to the unprecedented demand for elective surgery cases at Wagga Base Hospital and more specifically, the complexity of the cases," Ms Cooper said.

"The patient's doctor will always determine the elective surgery wait time for their patients in accordance with clinical need."

Ms Cooper said the hospital's medical, nursing and support staff are continuing to treat patients on time, despite the increasing demand.

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