The following words are terms that often appear in this website and in other information about tonsils and adenoids.

Abscess: A pocket of pus within the tissue. This can form between the tonsils and underlying throat muscles as a complication of tonsillitis.

Ablation: The surgical disintegration of soft tissue.

Adenoid: Clumps of lymphoid tissue, similar to the tonsils, but located very high in the throat, behind the nose. They trap and filter out germs that enter the body. The adenoids also help your body fight off infection by making antibodies. Adenoids can grow until the pre-teen years and tend to shrink during adolescence.

Adenoidectomy: Surgical removal of adenoids from the nasopharynx (the part of the throat behind the nose). Adenoidectomy is often performed at the same time as a tonsillectomy, but can also be performed alone.

Airway obstruction: A blockage in the airway that may cause problems with breathing. It can be caused by inflamed or enlarged tonsils and/or adenoids.

Antibiotic: A drug that is used to treat bacterial infections.

Cauterize: To burn or sear

Chronic: Lasting a long time

Coblation: A technique that uses radiofrequency (RF) energy to disintegrate tissue and seal blood vessels with little, if any, damage to surrounding, healthy tissue.

Conductive Medium: A saline (salt) solution, or another medium, that acts as a carrier for radiofrequency impulses.

Electrosurgery: A surgical procedure that uses electricity to cauterize, ablate or remove tissue.

Hypertrophy: This term describes a part of the body that grows abnormally large. When the adenoids and tonsils are enlarged, the condition is sometimes called adenotonsillar hypertrophy.

Immune: The state of being secure against potentially harmful agent.

Infection: The growth of harmful germs in the body (bacteria, virus, fungus, etc.)

Lymph: A clear or transparent fluid containing white blood cells and other cells that help fight infection.

Obstructive sleep apnea (OSA): A pause of breath lasting ten seconds or longer during sleep. Sleep apnea is usually associated with snoring. The snoring proceeds at a regular pace for a period of time, often becoming louder, but is then interrupted by a long silent period with no breathing (apnea). The apnea is then interrupted by a loud snort or gasp and the snoring resumes at a regular pace. Apnea may recur frequently throughout the night. Sleep apnea can be caused by a blockage in the upper airway or breathing passage.

Pus: A thick, yellowish fluid produced by inflammation, made up primarily of bacteria and dead white blood cells.

Scalpel: A small knife with a very sharp blade that is used in surgery.

Sleep-disordered breathing (SDB): A condition in which people breathe irregularly while sleeping. This usually causes arousal or partial arousal from sleep.

Snoring: The sound caused by air trying to get around a partial blockage in the upper breathing passages, occurring during sleep, when the muscles at the back of the throat relax, causing a structure know as the soft palate to partially block the upper breathing passages.

Strep throat: Strep throat is a throat infection caused by a certain type of bacteria. Though it may cause the throat to swell, strep throat is different from sore throat and tonsillitis.

Tonsil: Oval-shaped, lymphoid tissue located at the back of your throat. Tonsils are part of the immune system, which aids the body in fighting off infections. Although their exact purpose is unknown, they are thought to act as filters and fighters of bacteria. However, they can be overcome by invading bacteria and become infected themselves, sometimes chronically.

Tonsillectomy: The surgical removal of tonsils.

Tonsillitis: Inflammation or infection of the tonsils. This swelling is usually caused by either a viral or bacterial germ.

Radiofrequency energy: Electrical radio-frequency energy that may be used in medical procedures, as in Coblation, for sculpting, shrinking or removing soft-tissue. is an advanced form of radiofrequency.