Drill-hole guide for internal fixation of fractures of the mandibular condyle.

We have developed a drill-hole guide valuable in accurately positioning the fracture of the mandibular ramus. It operates by introducing a Kirschner wire through the fracture stump from the mandibular angle to the condyle. A 2.0- to 2.4-mm-diameter Kirschner wire is drilled into the ramus from below and proceeds up to the condylar fragment through the stump of the fracture. With this guide, 15 patients with 23 subcondylar fractures underwent open reduction with Kirschner wire fixation. In each case, wire, by means of a pinning technique, was inserted accurately from the mandibular angle to the repositioned condyle.