LYMPHOID HYPERPLASIA OF THE NASOPHARYNX: A STUDY OF ONE HUNDRED AND THIRTY-ONE AUTOPSY SPECIMENS

Abstract

Since Waldeyer1first described the lymphatic apparatus of the pharynx, various concepts concerning the development and involution of the lymphatic tissue of this organ have been presented. The one most commonly accepted is the so-called craniocaudal development of Waldeyer's ring (fig. 1). CRANIOCAUDAL DEVELOPMENT AND INVOLUTION According to this concept, the developmental and involutional changes of the lymphatic apparatus occur in the same sequence. A complete description must necessarily embrace the nasopharyngeal, tubal, palatine and lingual tonsils. The development of the nasopharyngeal and tubal tonsils begins after birth and attains its peak between the second and third years of life. At puberty the involution of these structures generally approaches completion. The development of the palatine tonsils may begin early in infancy but usually later than that of the nasopharyngeal and tubal tonsils. The involution of the palatine tonsils is observed in the majority of persons after the fourth decade of