LEVEL OF KNOWLEDGE AND ATTITUDE TOWARDS THE USE OF FILLERS.

Objective: to assess the knowledge and attitude of females in Saudi Arabia towards the use of filler injections, and to explore the factors that influence their decision to have it. Study design: cross-sectional study. Subjects and Methods: online self-administered questionnaire was distributed randomly to 204 Saudi Arabian females from November 2016 to January 2017. Descriptive analysis was done for all the data to obtain the required frequencies and percentages. Results: results showed that (96.6%) know about fillers and only (3.4%) never heard about it. The most recognized injection areas were the lips (86.8%), cheeks (73%), and nasolabial lines (70.1%). The most recognized side effects were bruising (64.2%), numbness (61.8%) and over-correction (55.4%). Further analysis showed that (16.7%) of those are in fact users of fillers, and they received it in a medical setting by (90.6%), while (9.4%) received it in non-medical setting such as beauty salons. Among the study sample, the most important factors that influenced the decision to have fillers were doctors and family opinion equally by (43.8%). Conclusion: a good level of awareness was found but our society needs further education about fillers, especially regarding the aesthetic outcome in order to meet patient expectations and improve the overall experience. Further studies to evaluate the practice of filler injections are advisable. Keywords: dermatology, cosmetics, fillers, injections