Enuresis is understood when the child does not control nighttime urination and wet the bed. To use the term 'enuresis', the child must have an age equal to or greater than 5 years and the number of monthly episodes will be at least two.
According to some experts in 85% of cases it is a hereditary problem, with the involvement of a gene on chromosome 13 (where the information that will determine if the child will suffer enuresis in the future is encoded). Enuresis affects similar proportions throughout Spain, and should be recognized as a health problem because it remains a frequently forgotten entity with consequences on the school, personal life and family balance of the child
Low self-esteem, impediments to social development - going to camps, colonies or sleeping at friends' homes - lack of motivation and school failure, sleep interruption, isolation, etc., are some of the consequences of the disease, in fact it is considered for children who suffer between 8 and 16 years, as the most traumatic event behind divorce and fighting between parents
In 90% of enuresis cases there is a physiological cause in the background which can be in the maturation of the bladder, a production of nocturnal urine higher than normal, etc., in the remaining 10% it may be due to an unusual event in the child's life or in his family structure such as the birth of a brother , parental separation, etc.
One of the main problems is the lack of information that has turned this disorder into a taboo subject (as explained in the book 'Why do children wet the bed?').
The solution necessarily goes through the consultation with the pediatrician who, in addition to providing information about the problem, will perform the appropriate tests to rule out other more serious pathologies that have associated bedwetting such as diabetes, infections or malformations of the urinary tract, among others. It will be time to determine the solution to the problem.
For Dr. Ruíz de la Roja, Director of the Madrid Urological Institute 'Despite the high numbers of children suffering from bedwetting, what is most striking is that only 2 out of 10 kids are still evaluated and treated at some time by a doctor, which demonstrates the parents' lack of knowledge'.
