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Parathyroid glands
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The parathyroids are four tiny glands, each about the size of a pea, and they sit in the neck, on top of the thyroid or right beside it. Their name comes from being neighbors, not from being alike: para means next to.
In fact they do not even share tissue with the thyroid. A thick capsule of connective tissue, a kind of fibrous lining, separates the parathyroids from thyroid tissue, and sometimes more than four turn up scattered through tissues of the neck or the chest. What stands out most about these glands is how narrow their line of work is: their only purpose is to make parathyroid hormone, abbreviated PTH, and that hormone helps maintain the balance of calcium in the body. Four pea-sized glands devoted to a single mineral.
In brief
The parathyroids are four pea-sized glands located on or next to the thyroid gland, in the neck.
A thick connective tissue capsule separates them from thyroid tissue, and sometimes there are more than four in tissues of the neck or chest.
Their only purpose is to make parathyroid hormone, or PTH, which helps maintain the balance of calcium in the body.
Sources (2)
- National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney DiseasesPrimary Hyperparathyroidism
- OpenStax, Rice UniversityAnatomy and Physiology 2e, 17.5 The Parathyroid GlandsPublished
This page explains the topic in general terms; it does not tell anyone what treatment to follow.
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