In 1932 there appeared the work of SCHMORL and JUNGHANNS, Die gesunde
und kranke Wirbelsiiule im Rontgenbild, which laid the foundations of
diagnostic radiology of the spine. Since that time the discipline has
been extended and refined in a systematic manner and our knowledge has
been greatly enriched by the large number of monographs in which leading
experts have assembled additional data. An encyclopedic treatment of all
that is currently known requires not only that reference be made to all
work published since 1932 in order to reveal the problems that remain
but also that a serious attempt be made to contribute to the solution of
such problems. For this reason, Professor TONDURY and Professor THEILER
of Zurich, who know more than anyone else about the ontogeny of the
spine, have been invited to display their erudition in this field.
Should contra- dictions or divergent opinions on certain points be
revealed through this confrontation with radiologically obtained
findings, so much the better; the effect of this could only be to spur
workers in both disciplines on to more advanced research. We have only
to recall how in Goethe's time the premaxilla was still the subject of
controversy, yet this great man pursuing his studies in comparative
anatomy and anthropology was able to prove its existence beyond all
doubt. Mainz, May 1974 L. DIETHELM Inhaltsverzeichnis - Contents A. Die
normale Wirbelsliule . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1 1 I.
Phylogenetische Entwicklung des Achsenskelets. Von K. THEILER 1 1. Die
Bogenelemente. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2. Die Chorda dorsalis . . .
. . . . . . . . . . .