Definition of "Bedwetting"

Last modified: 1 day



Bedwetting (aka nocturnal enuresis, nighttime urinary incontinence) is involuntary urination whilst asleep, after the age at which bladder control usually occurs.

Classification
  • Primary, is where the child has not yet had a prolonged period of being dry. Most girls stay dry by 6yo, and boys by 7yo. By 10yo, 95% of children are dry at night
  • Secondary is when a child/adult begins wetting after having stayed dried

Patient information

So there are different types of peeing yourself in bed?
Yep, so there's primary, where bub has never stopped peeing themselves. And secondary, where they've stopped peeing themselves, but for some reason they have wet themselves in bed.

What age do bubs usually stop peeing themselves in bed?
For girls, it's earlier than boys, just like puberty. So it's usually around 6yo for girls, and 7yo for boys.

Cause
  • Slower physical development, where during 5-10yo, there is smaller bladder capacity, long sleeping periods, and underdevelopment of the body's alarms signalling a full or empty bladder
  • Insufficient production of ADH at night, or the inability of the child to sense the full bladder whilst asleep
  • Anxiety-causing events, including angry parents, unfamiliar social situations, overwhelming family events (e.g. birth of a brother or sister). It is a cycle because incontinence itself causes anxiety
  • Genetics, with 77% of offspring of both parents who were enuretic, and 44% of offspring where one parent was enuretic
  • OSA, underlying
  • Structural incontinence, which can rarely cause incontinence, usually Dx in childhood. It includes urinary reflux (i.e. urine backs up into one or both ureters)
See also

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Definition of Bedwetting | Autoprac


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