If the Shoe Doesn't Fit

Women have long struggled to fit their feet into high heels despite the pain.

You may recall how Cinderella's stepsisters desperately tried to wiggle their toes into the glass slipper to no avail. Or how Carrie Bradshaw of HBO's "Sex and the City" went crazy over a pair of Manolo Blahnik Mary Janes.

High heels may make the foot look sexy, but let's face it; they can be a big pain.

Now a Studio City podiatrist is promising to take the ouch out of stilettos.

Dr. Ali Sadrieh, of Beverly Hills Aesthetic Foot Surgery, has developed a patented "Cinderella" procedure by which he narrows the foot by shaving the bones on both sides and straightening the toes.

"It'll probably take 10 to 15 years before (a patient) has to get foot surgery," he told NBCLA.com.

So he suggests women get the surgery before they need it.

Patient Eleni Lipakis had surgery and she has found she cannot wear whatever shoes she wants without pain.

But some foot surgeons are opposed to the procedure. Dr. Glen Pfeffer, the past president of the American Orthopedic Foot and Ankle Society, called it "inappropriate to take the risk of surgery for someone who has no pain."

He said feet take 100,000 pounds of stress for every mile we walk.

But Dr. Sadrieh said women will be walking miles in those shoes, those high heel shoes.

So he added, "it makes sense to me to help a woman not be in discomfort by doing a safe procedure, than saying 'Sorry, deal with it.'"