Prevalence of Nocturnal Enuresis among Saudi Children Population

Abstract

Background Nocturnal enuresis (NE) is the involuntary urination that occurs while asleep after an age when bladder control at night is expected. It has a global incidence of 1.4%-28% among 6-12 years old children. The aim of this study is to show the prevalence, risk factors, types of provided treatment of enuresis among studied children in Kingdom of Saudi Arabia (KSA). Methods A cross-sectional descriptive study was carried out among Saudi children, 3-12 years of age, from different cities in Saudi Arabia, during the period from 20 October to 20 November 2019. Data was collected by using a pre-designed questionnaire that was distributed online and included questions designed to fulfill the study objectives. Results This study reported that 31.2% of Saudi children of the chosen ages are suffered from enuresis, the majority occurred at day and night by 55.1% while 43.9% occurred only at night. Participants described types of provided treatment as follows: behavioral modification was the most commonly used by 31.6% followed by pharmacological intervention (29.6%), bed-wetting alarm (6.8%), exercises to strengthen the bladder muscles (6.2%) and surgical intervention reported by 1.5% only. It was found that the improvement of enuresis on treatment occurred in 43.6% of cases. There was a significant reduction of the prevalence of NE with age (peak is 63.6% in 5-7 years old) but no significant correlation was found with gender (p = 0.104). However, there was a significant correlation with parent having history of NE (p = 0.001).

Prevalence of Nocturnal Enuresis Among Children Dwelling in Rural Areas of Sindh

“…Our study supported this, as the prevalence peaked at 65% in children between six and seven years of age and decreased in older age groups. This finding is similar to prior studies, which also reported the highest prevalence among six to seven-year-old participants [15,22].…”

“…According to our results, 60% of enuretic children had daytime and nighttime symptoms, which is congruent with a Saudi study where 55% of children had such symptoms [15]. However, one study reported a lower prevalence of 18% of daytime symptoms [25].…”

“…The prevalence of NE in our study was found to be 40% in children aged between three and 12 years living in the rural areas of the Sindh province, which is higher as compared to these. However, studies conducted in Saudi Arabia and Jamaica reported a higher prevalence of 63.6% and 50%, respectively [15][16]. This higher prevalence noted could be because of our study setting, as it is observed that the prevalence of NE is higher in rural than urban areas.…”

“…Since voluntary urinary continence develops as the child matures and as boys mature slower than girls do; hence, this can explain the higher prevalence in them [21]. However, some studies showed no difference among both genders [15]. The symptoms of NE regress as the child gets older, and its prevalence usually decreases with age.…”

Decreased vitamin D levels in children with primary mono-symptomatic nocturnal enuresis

“…Several studies have shown that the NE level decreases as age increases [12]. According to Alhifthy et al [13] the prevalence of NE was 63% at the age of 6-7 years and 4.5% at the age of 10-12 years old that is consistent with previous reports [5,14]. In this study, the order of birth was not significantly different between both groups, and this agrees with a Turkish study that reported no association between birth order and the prevalence of NE [15].…”