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Sleep Enuresis (Bed Wetting)

Description

Sleep enuresis, more commonly referred to as bed wetting, is a condition characterized by involuntary urinating during sleep at an age when bladder control is expected, usually past the age of five. This condition has two sub-categories: primary nocturnal enuresis, when a child has never achieved a series of dry nights, and secondary nocturnal enuresis, when a child or adult has gone through a substantial period of time without incident but then begins wetting.
Although both conditions are normally kept private to avoid negative social reaction, each generally has its own different cause. Primary enuresis, bed wetting nightly or once or twice a week is sometimes associated with smaller bladders, irritable bladders, and sometimes even lack of encouragement from parents to become potty trained.
In contrast, secondary enuresis is more likely caused by infection, stress, food allergies, or another medical condition like sleep apnea. Other possible causes linked to enuresis include: ADHD, constipation, large caffeine intakes and insufficient numbers of the anti-diuretic hormone.
Males are more likely to have this condition than females. There is also evidence the condition is greatly influenced by genetics. If if one or both parents were enuretic as children, the odds of their child having the same problem exponentially increase.

Diagnosis

A child is considered to have sleep enuresis when they wet the bed involuntarily while they are asleep at least twice a month; whereas, adults and children over the age of seven with the condition do it at least once a month. Primary is when the individual has never grown out of nocturnal wetting, and secondary is when he or she has gone through a “dry period” of at least three to six months and, for some reason or another, has returned to bed wetting.

Treatment

For many children, patience and encouragement from parents and family are the most-effective treatments for the problem. However, if the problem persists, medical evaluation should be done, especially if there is a suspected infection, bladder abnormality, or the condition is detrimentally hurting relationships with family and friends. There are a variety of tools used to help treat the condition in children. The most preventative treatment are child or adult diapers. However, some research shows that the use of diapers in children slows the bathroom training process. Some medications have been successful in temporarily treating the problem as have programs that teach children how to stay dry at night. Other treatments include a variety of training devices like bed-wetting alarms that condition a child to wake up before an incident occurs.

Source: Adapted from International Classification of Sleep Disorders Diagnostic & Coding Manual, American Academy of Sleep Medicine.