Injuries from Wearing High-Heeled Shoes on Rise: Study

Injuries from wearing high-heeled shoes are increasing, recent research has found.

Gerald McGwin, Ph.D., professor and vice chair, Department of Epidemiology, School of Public Health, University of Alabama at Birmingham, recently published a paper on the epidemiology of injuries from high heeled shoes.

Using data from the Consumer Product Safety Commission’s National Electronic Injury Surveillance System, McGwin looked at 3,294 injuries treated in emergency departments within the United States from 2002 to 2012. Results suggest that high-heel related injuries have nearly doubled in that period.

Women between 20-29 years of age had the highest injury rate.

The Cannes film festival was in the news recently for requiring women to wear high heeled shoes.

The study was published online in May in the Journal of Foot and Ankle Surgery.