An adenoid is a collection of lymphatic tissue at the back of the throat and nose.

It is part of the ring of lymphatic tissue in the throat (pharynx) that includes the tonsils and adenoids. This lymphatic tissue monitors everything that we eat, drink or breathe to see whether it might be harmful.

Anything that may be harmful to us that triggers off an immune response in these lymphatic areas stimulating the production of antibodies and immune cells called lymphocytes.

The adenoid tissue is found at the back of the nose in the pharynx called the nasopharynx.

If it becomes enlarged, it can cause a soreness at the back of the nose and can cause breathing difficulties through the nose. Particularly at night, this can mean that it causes snoring.

The treatment for these symptoms caused by an enlarged adenoid would be to remove the adenoid at surgery. This would be a general anaesthetic procedure performed by a specialist ENT surgeon.