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tonsils

 
Dental Dictionary: tonsil
 
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(ton′sil)
n

A rounded mass of tissue, usually of a lymphoid nature.

Tonsil. (Thibodeau/Patton, 2002)

Tonsil. (Thibodeau/Patton, 2002)

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Columbia Encyclopedia: tonsils
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Home > Library > Miscellaneous > Columbia Encyclopedia
tonsils, name commonly referring to the palatine tonsils, two ovoid masses of lymphoid tissue situated on either side of the throat at the back of the tongue. The pharyngeal tonsils, or adenoids, are masses of similar tissue located in the nasopharynx, and the lingual tonsils are rounded masses of tissue on the back of the tongue. The tonsils act as a filter against disease organisms. However, they often become a site of infection, a condition known as tonsillitis, and sometimes become enlarged. This condition is more prevalent during childhood, since tonsil tissue tends to regress with age. Removal of the tonsils is sometimes advised if frequent inflammation poses a threat to health. See respiration.

 
Health Dictionary: tonsils
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Two masses of tissue on either side of the throat. The tonsils, part of the lymphatic system, help defend the body against harmful microorganisms.

  • Formerly, tonsils were often removed surgically in childhood, but now they are not, unless the tonsils have grown too large or are continually subject to infection.

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    Veterinary Dictionary: tonsil
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    Home > Library > Animal Life > Veterinary Dictionary

    1. a small mass of lymphoid tissue, especially that found in close association with the mucous membrane of the throat; generally used alone to designate the palatine tonsil. Other structures referred to as tonsils are the cecal, lingual, esophageal, paraepiglottic, pharyngeal and tubal lymphoid aggregations.
    2. a small mass of tissue.

    • cecal t. — the accumulated mass of lymphoid tissue in the wall of cecum especially the proximal segment of the avian cecum.
    • cerebellar t. — a rounded mass forming part of the cerebellum on its inferior surface.
    • esophageal t. — large volume of lymphoid tissue in the caudal segment of the duck's esophagus.
    • follicular t. — a tonsil bearing numerous invaginations of its surface epithelium (fossulae) each surrounded by lymphoid tissue to form a follicle, as in the palatine tonsils of cattle or the lingual tonsils of the horse.
    • lingual t. — diffuse collection of lymphoid tissue near the tongue root of most mammals.
    • palatine t. — see palatine tonsil.
    • paraepiglottic t. — a collection of lymphoid tissue craniolateral to the epiglottic base.
    • pharyngeal t. — a collection of lymphoid tissue in the roof of the nasopharynx in pigs.
    • soft palate t. — lymphoid tissue within the soft palate; principal tonsils in pigs in which it forms twin smooth patches of mucosa.
    • tubal t. — the lymphoid tissue clustered close to the pharyngeal orifice of the auditory tube.
     
     

     

    Copyrights:

    Dental Dictionary. Mosby's Dental Dictionary. Copyright © 2004 by Elsevier, Inc. All rights reserved.  Read more
    Columbia Encyclopedia. The Columbia Electronic Encyclopedia, Sixth Edition Copyright © 2003, Columbia University Press. Licensed from Columbia University Press. All rights reserved. www.cc.columbia.edu/cu/cup/  Read more
    Health Dictionary. The New Dictionary of Cultural Literacy, Third Edition Edited by E.D. Hirsch, Jr., Joseph F. Kett, and James Trefil. Copyright © 2002 by Houghton Mifflin Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin. All rights reserved.  Read more
    Veterinary Dictionary. Saunders Comprehensive Veterinary Dictionary 3rd Edition. Copyright © 2007 by D.C. Blood, V.P. Studdert and C.C. Gay, Elsevier. All rights reserved.  Read more