Abstract
The increased demands towards the usage of fake braces are relatively high. One possible reason behind its usage is to lose weight. The use of Intermaxillary fixation for diet control (IMFDC) is ethically questionable since it causes more harm than good for the patients. No studies have reported the use of Fake Braces as an Intermaxillary Fixation in Saudi Arabia. Therefore, the aim of this study is to evaluate the knowledge and awareness toward the usage of Intermaxillary Fixation (fake braces) for diet controlling in Saudi Arabia. The study utilized a cross-sectional questionnaire with random sampling. An online-based questionnaire was distributed through all social media platforms, and it consisted of two sections. The first section included demographic data of the participants, and the second section included questions about fake braces in relation to diet control. Out of the 1230 respondents, only 72 participants believed that fake braces could be used as an intermaxillary fixation for diet control purposes. Out of the 72 participants, only 2 of them have worn fake braces for diet control purposes. 58.33% of the participants were aware that wearing fake braces has many drawbacks. Knowledge and awareness toward the usage of Intermaxillary Fixation (fake braces) for diet controlling in Saudi Arabia was high. The prevalence of the population in Saudi Arabia who use it in the five main regions was very low and insignificant. More studies discussing intermaxillary fixation for the purpose of diet control on a larger sample size are needed.