evaluation of changes in anthropometric indexes due to intermaxillary fixation

background. one of the treatment methods for facial fractures is close reduction technique, but treatment with intermaxillary fixation (imf) interferes with normal nutrition, and malnutrition can affect patient’s recovery. anthropometric measurements such as skinfold thickness and body mass index (bmi) are universal indexes for diagnosing malnutrition. so in this study we pointed out how treatment with imf changed the anthropometric indexes. methods. in this study 60 patients were treated with 4weeks of imf, skinfold thickness and bmi of these patients were measured and compared before and after the treatment. results. patients’ weight, bmi and skinfold thickness decreased during the imf period, and this decrease was statistically significant (p<0.01). conclusion. although no severe and acute malnutrition was seen among our patients; but imf led to mild to moderate malnutrition in some cases, which makes using nutrition supplements considerable in these situations. keywords: body mass index, fixation, malnutrition, skinfold thickness.