8-K

                                  UNITED STATES
                       SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION
                             Washington, D.C. 20549

                          -----------------------------

                                    FORM 8-K


                                 CURRENT REPORT
                     Pursuant to Section 13 or 15(d) of the
                         Securities Exchange Act of 1934

                          -----------------------------

       Date of Report (Date of earliest event reported): December 2, 2004

                           Orthofix International N.V.
             (Exact name of Registrant as specified in its charter)

     Netherlands Antilles             0-19961                   N/A
 (State or other jurisdiction  Commission File Number     (I.R.S. Employer
      of incorporation)                                 Identification Number)


                          -----------------------------

                             7 Abraham de Veerstraat
                                     Curacao
                               Netherlands Antilles              N/A
                     (Address of principal executive offices) (Zip Code)

     Registrant's telephone number, including area code: 011-59-99-465-8525

                          -----------------------------


Check the appropriate box below if the Form 8-K filing is intended to
simultaneously satisfy the filing obligation of the registrant under any of the
following provisions (see General Instruction A.2.):

[  ]  Written communications pursuant to Rule 425 under the Securities Act (17
CFR 230.425)

[  ]  Soliciting material pursuant to Rule 14a-12 under the Exchange Act (17 CFR
240.14a-12)

[  ]  Pre-commencement communications pursuant to Rule 14d-2(b) under the
Exchange Act (17 CFR 240.14d-2(b))

[  ]  Pre-commencement communications pursuant to Rule 13e-4(c) under the
Exchange Act (17 CFR 240.13e-4(c))





Item 1.01   Entry into a Material Definitive Agreement.
            ------------------------------------------

     As previously announced by Orthofix International N.V. on March 26, 2004,
James F. Gero has assumed the Chairmanship of the Board of Directors (the
"Board") in conjunction with the resignation as Chairman of Robert Gaines-Cooper
who remains a director of the Company. Upon assuming his new duties on December
2, 2004, Mr. Gero will receive annual cash compensation of $200,000, a grant of
44,000 non-qualified stock options as well as certain company provided medical,
dental and vision benefits.

Item 5.02   Departure of Directors or Principal Officers; Election of Directors;
            --------------------------------------------------------------------
            Appointment of Principal Officers.
            ----------------------------------

     On December 7, 2004, Orthofix International N.V. issued a press release
announcing the retirement of two of its directors from its Board and the
appointment of two new directors to the Board effective as of December 7, 2004.
As of the date of this filing, no final decisions have been made with respect to
which, if any, of the committees of the Board the new directors will serve. A
copy of the press release is attached hereto as Exhibit 99.1 and is incorporated
by reference herein.



Exhibit No.    Description of Document
- -----------    -----------------------

99.1           Press release of Orthofix International N.V. dated December 7,
               2004




                                    Signature



          Pursuant to the requirements of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934,
as amended, the registrant has duly caused this report to be signed on its
behalf by the undersigned hereunto duly authorized.



Dated:   December 8, 2004

                                     ORTHOFIX INTERNATIONAL N.V.


                                     By:  /s/ Thomas Hein
                                          --------------------------------------
                                          Name:  Thomas Hein
                                          Title: Chief Financial Officer

EX-99.1

[GRAPHIC OMITTED]

                                                           FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Contacts:
- ---------
Charles W. Federico, Group President and CEO, Orthofix International, N.V.,
704/948-2600
Thomas Hein, CFO, Orthofix International, N.V., 704/948-2600



                 Orthofix Announces Appointment of New Directors

HUNTERSVILLE, N.C., Dec. 7, 2004 -- Orthofix International, N.V. (NASDAQ: OFIX)
is pleased to announce the appointment of two new independent directors, Guy J.
Jordan, Ph.D., and Kenneth R. Weisshaar, who will join the Board immediately.
Dr. Jordan and Mr. Weisshaar will replace Edgar Wallner and John Littlechild,
who will be retiring from the Board of Orthofix N.V. after 17 years of valuable
contributions to the success of the company. Their much appreciated wisdom and
dedication were key in the growth of the company from a small entity into
today's global medical device corporation.

Dr. Jordan has a Ph.D. in organic chemistry from Georgetown University as well
as an MBA in marketing and brings over 25 years of professional R&D and large
company senior management experience to the Board. As a Group President at C.R.
Bard, Inc., Dr. Jordan had strategic and operating responsibility for Bard's
global oncology business and functional responsibility for all of Bard's
Research and Development. He is currently serving on the boards of several
public and private medical device companies.

Mr. Weisshaar, who has a BS from MIT and an MBA from Harvard, brings to the
Board additional significant experience in developing and implementing
strategies for global medical businesses. Ken was previously a consultant at
McKinsey & Co. He then spent 12 years as a corporate officer at Becton Dickinson
where, at different times, he was responsible for global businesses in medical
devices and diagnostic products and served as CFO and VP Strategic Planning. Ken
is currently on the board of several companies in the health care industry.

Both gentlemen will further strengthen the Board of Orthofix with their large
company perspective, strategic outlooks, and extensive R&D experience. They will
strongly support the company's reputation as a major global player in the
medical device industry.

About Orthofix International, N.V.
Orthofix International N.V., a global diversified orthopedic products company,
offers a broad line of minimally invasive surgical, as well as non-surgical,
products for the spine, reconstruction, and trauma market sectors that address
the lifelong bone-and-joint health needs of patients of all ages--helping them
achieve a more active and mobile lifestyle. Orthofix's products are widely
distributed around the world to orthopedic surgeons and patients--via Orthofix's
sales representatives and its subsidiaries, including Breg Inc., and via
partnerships with other leading orthopedic product companies, such as Medtronic
Sofamor Danek, Stryker Howmedica, and Kendall Healthcare. In addition, Orthofix
is collaborating in R&D partnerships with leading medical institutions such as
the Wake Forest University School of Medicine, the Orthopedic Research and
Education Foundation, the Cleveland Clinic Foundation, Innovative Spinal
Technologies and National Osteoporosis Institute. For more information about
Orthofix, please visit www.orthofix.com.





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Forward-Looking Statements
This news release contains certain forward-looking statements under the Private
Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. These forward-looking statements may
include, but are not limited to, statements concerning the projections,
financial condition, results of operations and businesses of Orthofix, and are
based on management's current expectations and estimates and involve risks and
uncertainties that could cause actual results or outcomes to differ materially
from those contemplated by the forward-looking statements. Factors that could
cause or contribute to such differences may include, but are not limited to,
risks relating to the integration of the businesses of Orthofix and Breg,
unanticipated expenditures, changing relationship with customers, suppliers and
strategic partners, risks relating to the protection of intellectual property,
changes to the reimbursement policies of third parties, changes to governmental
regulation of medical devices, the impact of competitive products, changes to
the competitive environment, the acceptance of new products in the market,
conditions of the orthopedic industry and the economy and other factors
described in the most recent report on Form 10-K and other periodic reports
filed by Orthofix with the Securities and Exchange Commission.


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