Fairfield woman's lawsuit claims shoes injured her hips

FAIRFIELD, Ohio - Shape up without going to the gym? It seems too good to be true but that's exactly what Skechers Shape Ups shoes advertise.

Holly Ward of Fairfield gave them a try.

"I just wanted to tone up a bit. I'm already walking, I might as well wear shoes that benefit me as well," said Ward, a server at a restaurant in West Chester.

She wore the shoes to work for five months then started to experience severe pain. She paid her doctor a visit.

"The M-R-I came back a few days later and that's when he realized that both femoral necks had been fractured," added Ward.

She claims, and doctors agree that the injuries were caused from wearing the Skechers Shape Ups.

Attorney Ron Johnson claims the design of the shoe is the problem.

"No shoe should ever be designed to make you less stable or to change your stride, especially a shoe that is marketed to wear during exercise or while walking," Johnson said.

Ward had surgery to repair the fractures and now lives with six screws that hold her bones together.

Leonard Armato, President of Skechers Fitness Group said in a statement to 9 News that "the company is confident that Shape-ups are safe."

Armato also said that there are "scientific studies that support the fitness benefits of toning footwear at www.toningshoestudies.com , which has seven clinical studies on rocker-bottom shoes, including two recent studies on Shape-ups."

Stay with 9 News and WCPO.com for updates on this lawsuit.