Today’s post is brought to you by the letter “T”…and by the number 20

I am so excited to take part in this, my second, A – Z Challenge!  Last year I did the challenge using “recipes” as my inspiration.  Well, this year I’m going to draw on my nursing background and use “parts of the human body” as my inspiration!  Hmmm…a part of the body that starts with “Q”, “X” or “Z”….

It should be a lot of fun and I’m looking forward to seeing how everyone interprets the Challenge!

So, without further ado, “T” is for Tonsils:

There are actually three pairs of tonsils in the throat:

• pharyngeal tonsils {also known as adenoids}, they are located in your throat, in the area behind your nose.
• two palatine tonsils {what most people think of when they hear the word “tonsil}, they are located on both sides of the back of the throat.
• lingual tonsils, which are at the back of the tongue.

Your tonsils are part of your lymphatic system and they help protect you from infection by trapping germs coming in through your mouth and nose.

Ironically, your tonsils and adenoids sometimes become infected themselves. Tonsillitis makes your tonsils sore and swollen. Enlarged adenoids can be sore, make it hard to breathe and cause ear problems.

The first treatment for infected tonsils and adenoids is antibiotics. If you have frequent infections or trouble breathing, you may need surgery. Surgery to remove the tonsils is tonsillectomy. Surgery to remove adenoids is adenoidectomy.

T is also for:

tarsus The region of the foot containing the seven tarsal bones.

taste bud An organ containing the chemocreceptors associated with the sense of taste.

T cell A type of lymphocyte that provides cell-mediated immunity (in contrast to B lymphocytes, which provide humoral immunity through the secretion of antibodies). There are three subpopulations of T cells: cytotoxic, helper, and suppressor.

tendon  A band of dense regular connective tissue that attaches muscle to bone.

testosterone  The major androgenic steroid secreted by the interstitial cells of the testes after puberty.

thalamus  An oval mass of gray matter within the diencephalon that serves as a sensory relay center.

thigh The proximal portion of the lower extremity between the hip and the knee in which the femur is located.

thrombus  A blood clot produced by the formation of fibrin threads around a platelet plug.

thymus  A bilobed lymphoid organ positioned in the upper mediastinum, posterior to the sternum and between the lungs.

I found the above definitions at the McGraw-Hill Applied Biology Resource Center.  Visit their site and you’ll be amazed to know there are even more “T” parts of the body listed there!

The information contained in this post was obtained from eHow Health, Wikipedia, MedlinePlus, Kids Health, About.com,  eHealth Forum and McGraw-Hill Applied Biology Resource Center.