The rigid internaI fixation of mandibular fractures has become a widely ac­ cepted practice among European surgeons. The caution or even outright re­ jection voiced at a congress of the German Society of Maxillofacial Sur­ 1970s is no longer prevalent. Through a process of geons held in the late critical review and implementation, rigid internaI fixation has become an established treatment modality at numerous centers, especially in Switzer­ land, the Federal Republic of Germany, and the Netherlands. By comparison, the method has received very little attention in North America and the Anglo-Saxon countries. By and large, surgeons in these countries continue to treat mandibular fractures by intermaxillary fixation, possibly supplemented by the use of interosseous wires. Many recent edi­ tions of surgical texts confirm this. Lately, however, there appears to be a surge of interest in methods of functionally stable internaI fixation, especially in the United States of America, and AO/ ASIF instruction courses are increasingly in demand. This book is intended to aid course participants in their lessons and practi­ cal exercises and also to guide the clinical practitioner in the application of AO/ ASIF principles. Basel, September 1988 B.SPIESSL VII Acknowledgments I have received help from many sources. The colleagues of the past 20 years who have contributed to the case material upon which this manual is based are too numerous to credit by name.

Assisted by: Berton A. Rahn
Translated by: Terry C. Telger