While it has not become a craze in Columbus yet, a new cosmetic surgery craze in Great Britain has begun making headlines in the US over the past few weeks.  Dermal filler is being injected into women’s feet to provide additional cushioning in areas that are placed under excess pressure by wearing extreme high heels.  The surgery has been nicknamed a “Loub job” in reference to the French shoe designer Christian Louboutin who has been quoted that he does not care if his shoe creations are uncomfortable.  With unpleasant thoughts of wearing painful heels to upcoming graduations and graduation parties for their kids at Westerville South High School, Beechcroft High School or any of the other schools in the Columbus area, women should be pleased to know that less extreme measures can offer great pain relief!

While it would be ideal for optimal foot health to completely eliminate high heels and stilettos from a woman’s shoe choices, it is understandable that there are occasions where dressing up is necessary.  When choosing a dress shoe there are a few things women can do to decrease the pain and potential for injury or deformity caused by the shoe.  Selecting a shoe with a wider toebox versus a pointy toe can limit the development of painful corns and calluses as well as bunions and hammertoes.  If possible, choosing a lower height heel can also decrease the extreme amount of pressure placed on the ball of the foot. 

Certain areas of the foot are affected worse than other when wearing heels.  These areas include the ball of the foot, the bottom and back of the heel and the toe pads, which are some of the areas where dermal filler is being injected in the cosmetic surgery “Loub job”.  High heels are notorious for causing a painful bony bump on the back of the heel in women that is called a “Haglund’s deformity” or “Pump Bump”.  This bump develops from the excess irritation caused by the rigid structure of a pump or high heeled style shoe.  Changing the shoes and adding a heel grip device to the shoe to provide a cushion in the painful aspect are options to decrease the symptoms.  Surgery offers the ability to completely remove the painful bump.  Metatarsalgia, or pain in the ball of the foot, is another issue being targeted by these injections.  There are many custom padding options that your podiatrist can create that will offer the extra cushioning, without having to go through an injection.  It is also important to realize that pain in the ball of the foot may be occurring for reasons that will not be cured by increasing the foot’s cushioning.  For example, neuromas are seen with increased frequency in women who wear heels but often require surgery or injections to remove the irritated nerve in order to alleviate the pain.  For this reason, it is always crucial to have a thorough appointment with your podiatrist to correctly diagnose a problem before self-treating or selecting a treatment from another health professional if they have not identified the underlying cause of the pain. 

Talk to your podiatrist to discuss all the options to enjoy and show off your toes at graduations and spring events without suffering through foot pain!

Please visit www.ColumbusFoot.com for more information or call 614-885 FEET(3338) to schedule an appointment with a podiatrist in Columbus, Ohio. Columbus Podiatry & Surgery is located on the North side of Columbus, Ohio near Westerville. If you would like to see a podiatrist in Dublin, Ohio near Tuttle Crossing, call 614-859-FEET(3338) for an appointment.

By Dr. Animesh (Andy) Bhatia

Every February, New York Fashion Week in New York City brings strange new trends for the people of Columbus and the world to be entertained by.  One strange fashion presented at a previous fashion week took the term “pigeon toed” literally by having real stuffed birds positioned as if they were sitting on top of the foot.  As a shoe trend, “pigeon toed” may be stylish, but when seen as a walking pattern in children, parents should contact their podiatrist for a checkup as soon as possible. 

Kid feet are not simply smaller versions of adult feet.  The bones in the legs and feet of a small child are still developing and can sometimes take on an appearance that would be abnormal for an adult, but is normal for a kid.  For example, infants can have flat arches that would be abnormal for an adult, but are normal for a for certain periods of childhood development.  Walking with the toes turned in toward the midline of the body is the walking pattern commonly referred to as being “pigeon toed” or “in-toeing” and can appear and spontaneously resolve in some children, while in others can be a major cause for concern. 

Being pigeon-toed can represent bone deformity in the feet, tibia (or shin bone), or hip.   When the foot bones are involved, the condition is typically called “metatarsus adductus”.  The metatarsal bones at the base of each toe develop angled toward the midline of the body, commonly as a result of the child’s position while developing in the mother.  Treatment can be highly successful if the condition is caught before the infant is two years of age using a series of casts to properly re-align the bones.  Custom shoes and orthotics may also be used.  When the tibia or hip is rotated towards the midline of the body causing the feet to also appear “pigeon toed” casting or surgery may also be needed as treatment.  For all of these conditions, the earlier a parent notices the problem and contacts their podiatrist, the more treatment options will be available.  Take care of your little ones’ feet beginning before they begin walking and they can avoid being pigeon toed for a life that will hopefully also be free of wearing pigeon high-heels!

Please visit www.ColumbusFoot.com for more information or call 614-885 FEET (3338) to schedule an appointment with a podiatrist in Columbus, Ohio. Columbus Podiatry & Surgery is located on the North side of Columbus, Ohio near Powell. If you would like to see a podiatrist in Dublin, Ohio near Tuttle Crossing, call 614-885-3338 for an appointment.

By Dr. Animesh (Andy) Bhatia

This past weekend around Columbus was the 30^thannual Pride Festival.  While there was a wide variety of unusual attire at this parade, shoes are one fashion accessory to choose carefully before heading out to any summer parade or festival.  While the look of the shoes may be of utmost importance to many fashionistas, choosing shoes that provide comfort can make your day much more enjoyable. 

Summer means more shoe options including flip flops and a variety of other sandals.  Knowing which type of shoe is healthies twas a topic of a recent article on Oprah’s website and can help to make better choices when shopping for new shoes.  Surprisingly, ballet flat shoes were ranked as the most dangerous type of shoe.  Part of the reason for this ranking is that many people would consider a flat to be more comfortable and healthy for feet than a higher shoe and they then over-wear them.  A flat has as little arch support as the similarly dangerous flip-flop, but ballet flats also put pressure on the sides of the foot, the back of the heel and the tips of the toes.  Extreme lack of any arch support in flip flops or flats can lead to foot pain in individuals with flat feet or overpronation.  Because they do not enclose the entire foot, flip flops can give some relief to those suffering from the pain of bunions or calluses rubbing against shoes.  Both ballet flats and similarly structured flat styles of sneakers such as “Chuck Taylors” that do enclose the foot will not only aggravate these conditions on the sides of the feet and toes, but their rigid heel areas can cause a Haglund’s deformity.  In this condition, a bursa over the heel bone or calcaneus becomes irritated from being rubbed against and causes pain. 

Of the elevated shoes discussed in the article, stilettos were not surprisingly chosen as the most dangerous.  A better choice for an occasion requiring a more formal shoe would be a wedge.  If the wedge has a cork or raffia sole, it will offer more shock absorption and thus can help prevent joint damage.  Wedges also offer slightly more stability than a stiletto, which can help to avoid ankle sprains.  While a properly fitted athletic shoe with adequate support will often be the optimal choice for foot health, wearing them at every occasion may not always be possible.  It is good to be aware and evaluate other shoe options to make healthy choices about your feet.  Orthotics can also be helpful in making an uncomfortable shoe more bearable!

Please visit www.columbusfoot.com for more information or call 614-885 FEET (3338) to schedule an appointment with a podiatrist in Columbus, Ohio. Columbus Podiatry & Surgery is located on the North side of Columbus, Ohio near Westerville, Ohio.

By Dr. Animesh (Andy) Bhatia

As Columbus fans who attended Lady Gaga’s March “Monster Ball” concert at the Value City Arena can attest to, Lady Gaga is known for her wild fashion statements.  Although she may make walking in crazy shoes look effortless as she stomps across piano keys or performs on Saturday Night Live, it may be somewhat of a painful process to pull off that look.

Women everywhere know how painful wearing even moderate high heels can be on a day to day basis.  For Gaga’s “Bad Romance” music video off her last CD, the 12 inch tall Alexander McQueen shoes she chose to wear had been so troublesome to walk in that it is reported that three runway models had refused to wear them on their runway debut.  Based on Lady Gaga’s visit to “The View” this past Wednesday, it seems as though her affinity for hard-to-balance shoes has only grown with her latest release.  For some time she has been a fan of designer Noritaka Tatehana’s giant heel-less platforms that only offer support under the front, ball of the foot.  The similarly heel-less platforms she sported on “The View” had her towering over the hosts of the show with their insane height.  

 While she may be pushing fashion boundaries to the extremes, Lady Gaga is also pushing her feet to the extreme and is likely to incur some foot pain as a result of her shoe wear.  By not having any heel support at all, all body weight is shifted to put pressure on the front of the foot.  This can cause problems such as sesamoiditis, in which two small bones called sesamoids, at the base of the big toe become irritated and inflamed.   This is also a common injury in dancers who also place extra pressure on the front of their foot.  Standing on the front of the foot at such an extreme angle also makes calf muscles work extra hard to maintain balance.  Not only can this cause Achilles tendonitis and associated heel pain, but when that balance cannot be maintained falls, ankle sprains and ankle fractures are more likely.  Because the ankle joint involves the talus bone in the  foot and the tibia, with both the fibula and calcaneus, or heel bone, closely contacting the bones of the ankle joint, fractures can require serious surgery to correct and realign broken bones.  Even Lady Gaga has been spotted falling at the airport in her heel-less shoes and is lucky that she did not have any serious injuries!  Hopefully Lady Gaga takes care of her feet on a regular basis when she is not in public wearing crazy shoes and that she knows a good podiatrist to help prevent or treat any future problems! 

Please visit www.columbusfoot.com for more information or call 614-885 FEET (3338) to schedule an appointment with a podiatrist in Columbus, Ohio. Columbus Podiatry & Surgery is located on the North side of Columbus, Ohio in between Westerville, Worthington and Powell.

By Dr. Animesh (Andy) Bhatia