Tonsils

The palatine tonsils, (also known as the faucial tonsils or simply "the tonsils") are a bilateral collection of lymphoid tissue in the pharyngeal mucosa. They form part of Waldeyer's ring.

Gross anatomy

It is often described to have two borders, two poles and two surfaces:

  • anterior and posterior borders (described in relations below)
  • upper and lower poles: extending to the soft palate and dorsum of the tongue respectively
  • medial and lateral surfaces (described in relations below)
Relations

Arterial supply

Venous drainage

  • venous drainage is via a venous plexus which drains into the pharyngeal plexus and external palatine vein

Lymphatic drainage

  • lymph nodes: deep cervical group
    • jugulodigastric nodes: inferior to the angle of the mandible

Innervation

Histology

Consists of:

  • non-keratinized stratified squamous epithelium
  • incompletely encapsulated
  • long-branched tonsillar crypts: e.g. intratonsillar cleft

Related pathology

Siehe auch: