The vast majority of children with large tonsils or adenoids never develop sleep apnea however. Some patients who snore have sleep apnea and most patients with sleep apnea snore. Tonsillectomy And Adenoidectomy T A With Images Sinusitis This happens when the flow of air is disrupted such as when the tonsils or adenoids are large. Large tonsils and sleep apnea . Tonsillitis is especially common in children who suffer from sleep apnea and is a common reason that tonsillectomies are performed in the united states. Specific obstructive sleep apnea symptoms include loud snoring troubling sleeping and waking up in the middle of the night with bouts of shortness of breath 3. It is unlikely that if you have moderate or severe sleep apnea that removal of the tonsils alone will cure the apnea. Sleep apnea is a chronic and common sleep disorder that makes it hard to breathe while sleeping. Very large tonsils can also block part of the airway and lead to obstructive sleep apnea 3 acco