Sculptra ® Injections Creates Pillows for the Feet “It’s a fact: Women love their high-end, high heel designer shoes. And while high heels are sexy and gorgeous, they make women around the world scream, “My feet are killing me” after a few hours of wear. Regardless, the fact remains; women love their shoes and will subject themselves to the pain. But now, there is a way for women to wear their high heels and be pain free. Podiatric Physician Dr. Ted Cohen is now offering a procedure that will create a pillow-like cushion on the ball of the foot. By injecting Sculptra®, a safe, synthetic, and biocompatible material (a material that does not harm the body) below the surface of the skin, it “puff ups” areas that have atrophied over the years due to wear and tear. Sculptra®, also known as Poly-L-Lactic Acid has been widely used for many years in dissolvable stitches, and soft tissue implants. Now, it is being used in the feet to eliminate pain. The Sculptra® injections are $1000 for both feet. Results are immediate and can last between 9-12 months in most cases. The procedure is ideal for people who are on their feet all day like hairdressers, servers, salespeople, casino workers and women who refuse to give up their high heels. Professional dancers and runners have also used Sculptra®. “We are now utilizing this material to supplement areas such as the balls of the feet and other bony areas where there is atrophy of the fat pad, often caused by wearing high heels,” “Sculptra® fills those flattened areas and provides internal cushioning in the feet, creating padding between the skin and the bones of the foot. Loss of fat on the bottom of the foot is common, especially in women. This can result in pain and burning on the ball of the foot. Sculptra® allows women to wear their 4” heels without the pain.” The foot is a complex structure of 26 bones and 33 joints, layered with an intertwining web of more than 120 muscles, ligaments, and nerves. Since the feet are very small compared with the rest of the body, the impact of each step exerts tremendous force upon them — about 50% greater than the person’s body weight. During a typical day, people spend about 4 hours on their feet and take 8,000 – 10,000 steps. This means that the feet support a combined force equivalent to several hundred tons every day. High heels slant the foot forward and down while bending the toes up. The more often the feet are forced into this position, a much greater weight is transferred to the ball of the foot, increasing the likelihood of damage to the underlying soft tissue which supports the foot, causing pain. “I love my high heels and I refuse to give them up,” said professional model Allison Karni. “But after a few hours, my feet always start to hurt. I’ve spent thousands of dollars on my designer shoes and always end up kicking them off before the night is over. I tried inner soles or shoe pads but they never fit right, never stayed in place, and they made my shoes too tight. Sculptra® injectable implants replaced the padding on the ball of my foot after the first treatment. Now I feel like I have pillows on my feet. This procedure is wildly popular in New York City, LA, Miami “Some credit Sex and the City with making it okay for women to admit to having a love affair with their designer shoes. Now, women can still be slaves to fashion, but they no longer need to be a slave to foot pain.””