A specialist surgeon has been suspended from a world-renowned NHS hospital after children under their care were left with lasting injuries.

A review was commissioned at Addenbrooke's Hospital, Cambridge, the East of England's designated major trauma centre, after concerns were raised by the surgeon's colleagues in October.

Cambridge University Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust said an independent expert found operations involving nine children fell "below expected standards" on several occasions during the past two and a half years.

The trust's chief executive, Roland Sinker, said: "We are very sorry that this has happened and we apologise unreservedly to our patients and their families."

The review analysed a number of complex paediatric hip surgery procedures at the hospital and found that some of the children's quality of life had been affected, including their mobility.

The procedures in question did not result in amputation, but some of the children required further surgery they would otherwise not have needed, the trust said.

Roland Sinker said he took the concerns "extremely seriously" and the surgeon was put on restricted duties while the investigation took place.

Mr Sinker said that they were suspended after the review and were "fully co-operating" with the trust's process.

A helpline was made available for parents concerned about the treatment their children had received.

The trust has also been contacting the patients and their families to schedule appointments and undergo further clinical assessments where required.

Mr Sinker said: "We take this matter extremely seriously and are committed to ensuring all affected patients and families receive appropriate care and support."

The hospital trust contacted the General Medical Council, NHS England and the Care Quality Commission in light of the review.

Mr Sinker added: "We will find out whether there were any opportunities to have identified these concerns earlier as well as any wider learning and changes required in the immediate and longer term."

He said a further review was planned to study all the operations undertaken by the surgeon during their employment at the trust.

It is the second NHS hospital carrying out complex surgery to have reviewed the work of a paediatric surgeon in the past six months.

In September, Great Ormond Street Hospital in central London  reviewed the cases of around 700 children after concerns about one of its doctors.