Foot Cosmetic Surgery Catching On

Cosmetic surgery for feet is gaining a foothold among women who want to look better in shoes.

But, reports Susan McGinnis in part two of The Early Show's series on foot care, many doctors urge women to avoid the surgery.

McGinnis says some observers call the trend the " 'Sex and the City' effect."

Whatever it's called, she adds, women's love affair with their shoes is as hot as ever. And a growing number of women are taking their feet in for regular maintenance.

"I notice," says podiatric surgeon Dr. Suzanne Levine of Manhattan's Institute Beaute, "especially at this time of year, people are most concerned about how their feet look and feel. They're wearing strappy sandals. They're exposing their toes."

Among the procedure Levine does on feet are "foot facials," complete with a salt scrub, "mask," peel and massage. Some patients get injections into the ball of their feet of a chemical called "Restylane" to cushion the blow of high heels.

Other women go even further to dress up their feet.

Danielle Maisano of Long Island, N.Y. had hammertoes and uneven toes. She says she's been embarrassed by her feet for years: "I was cursed, because shoes are my thing, and I got blessed with ugly feet."

But Maisano turned to Manhattan podiatric surgeon Dr. Stuart Mogul for help."I'm gonna have my second toe shortened, so it's gonna be level with the rest of my toes," she said before her operation.

"The surgery," explains Mogul, "revolves around creating a toe that is straighter, somewhat shorter, and a bit stiffer."

Maisano's hammertoes did cause her some pain, or they might have been out of bounds for Mogul, who says he's against performing foot surgery for purely cosmetic reasons.

Other procedures doctors say patients are requesting include having toes lengthened, feet narrowed, foot and toe liposuction, and fat added to feet. Some are even said to be asking to have pinky toes removed, all in the name of fashion.

But, continues McGinnis, not all doctors agree that cosmetic foot surgery is a good step.

The American Academy of Orthopaedic Surgeons says it sees too many patients suffer the consequences of botched procedures.

Baltimore's Dr. Stuart Miller, who's with the AAOS, says a large part of his practice is fixing other surgeon's mistakes: "The complications can be devastating. Some women have had to go through five or six surgeries just to get back to walking on their foot, much less getting into their shoes."

Try telling that to Maisano, who's busy building a new wardrobe of shoes around her new, prettier feet.

"I'm going high heels696506> and open-toed shoes from now on" she exclaims.