Nocturnal enuresis: sleep disturbance and behavioural patterns

Abstract

Sleep pattern and behaviour was studied in 88 children with nocturnal enuresis and compared with 340 non-enuretic children. There were no differences in common psychosomatic complaints. Enuresis was almost three times more common in the families of the enuretic children than in the families of their non-enuretic peers. The enuretics were considered deep sleepers by their parents. A wake-up test showed that they were more difficult to arouse at night compared with controls (p < 0.001). These results demonstrate that enuresis has a strong genetic link and enuretics are characterized as deep sleepers but do not display different day-time behavioural patterns compared with their non-enuretic peers.