Question
hi,
   i've been experiencing a lot of back pain and heel pain lately.  i think it has something to do with my flat feet.  i try to wear arch support cushions when i can, but i wear sandals most of the time, so i really don't use those cushions often.  i just wanted to know if there was such a thing as surgery for flat feet.  i just want to have a natural arch in my feet, b/c i think that type of correction can really relieve a lot of the pain that i've been going through.  if there is such a thing, do you have any idea about how much that can cost and if most insurance companies would cover it? thanks!  

Answer
There is a surgery, but it isn't a good surgery. You are much better off with custom made orthoitcs and custom made sandalls that have orthoitcs built in. Go to http://benefoot.com/  and click on the sandalls for info on them.

 Surgery is a treatment of last resort.  It doesn't always work out correctly, and if it doesn't you can wind up much worse off that you are now.   I don't do that type of surgery, but I would imagine it would cost in the neighborhood of $4,000 - 5,000 for each foot.  You probably would need the custom made orthotics after the surgery anyway