By

K. Riden, FRCS, FDSRCS, Southmead Department of Maxillofacial Surgery, Southmead Hospital, Bristol, UK

Preface

Oral and maxillofacial surgery has an extensive body of literature on which its exponents may call and make their own contributions. In spite of this there is no single book aimed at the trainee and thosen ew to the speciality. The twin demand for a clinically useful manual and a source for examination candidates is, like most other specialities, almost impossible to resolve adequately.
The twin undergraduate degrees required, at least currently, by junior maxillofacial surgeons gives a very solid basis in basic medical and dental sciences and the need to sit two final fellowship exams requires broad general professional training. Even though the pattern of exam success expected of surgical trainees is changing, the need for a text for candidates is not. The exit examination is n ae w hurdle for higher surgical trainees and the specific needs of its candidates changeass the exam evolves. There is enough in this book
to satisfy fully the needs of undergraduates, to sate almost entirely the appetite of junior hospital staff and provide a reference text for general medical and dental practitioners. The reading advice identifies areas of interest and essential reading for exam candidates without being to didactico r directed in identifying specific bookos r journals. Most people rapidly evolve their own favourite sources in any case but each chapter of this text provides a sensible framework which can be ‘fleshed out’ with further reading as suggested
according to personal needs and interests. As with most books the thanks and acknowledgements owed are many but any errors are
entirely mine. Some of the initial material for the chapters on bums, tumour classification and salivary gland disease were provided by Paul Wilson. Many colleagues both junior and senior had a hand in reading the drafts and passing helpful comments on the emerging texts at various stage of writing. Feedback during SHO teaching is always freely offered and uncompromising in the frankness of its criticisms. The ‘beta testing’ of some of the chapters has therefore been extensive and the user friendliness testing has exposed the breaking strain of some of my English prose!
Particular thanks are due to my consultant colleagues for their efforts in reading and offering corrections to the final chapter drafts. My thanks to Sandy Davis, Geoff Jones, Gordon Imine, Phil Guest, Surgeon Captain George Rudge, and Professor Peter Ward
Booth for his work on some of the early drafts. Jonathen Sandy’s reading of the orthognathic chapters is acknowledgeId o. we a debt of gratitude to various able members of my family for their contribution to the tasks of typing and retyping drafts and for invaluable
assistance with compilation of the index. In particular Mrs Lesley Riden and Mrs Mavis Riden made invaluable contributions and their typing marathons are gratefully acknowledged. Many other aspects of life have been sacrificed in otrod e rg et this volume to production and my family can attestto my preoccupation with it at various times. My thanks to them also.
The one hundred key topics chosen represent my view of the essence of this speciality and go some way to defining its scope. There will inevitabbley differences of opinion as to my sins of omission and commission but for the people for whom this book was written there is no equivalent text. It is to themI offer it to be used and abused at will with the hope that it answers their needs for appropriate and accessible information about this speciality