Hi Sujay, your doctor is trying to rule out an underlying medical cause to your son’s bedwetting. Medical causes are rare and only account for approximately 10% of all bedwetting cases. It is however very important to rule this out first. A very small percentage of children may wet at night due to a poorly aligned spine, so this may explain why you are being referred for these tests. The three most common causes of bedwetting include (1) an overproduction of urine overnight – children who have low-levels of ADH (antidiuretic hormone) produce four times the amount of urine as those who have the hormone and are therefore at a greater likelihood of exceeding their bladder capacity overnight (and explains why her bladder seems to keep filling). If this is the cause children generally stop wetting their bed when their ADH levels return to normal; (2) Difficulty arousing from sleep in response to a full-bladder – these children are unable to detect the signals sent from their bladder to their brain telling it it is full and needs emptying. These children will stop wetting when their body matures to a point where they can wake-up in response to their full bladder; and (3) a genetic disposition – children who wet the bed are more likely to have a family member who also wet the bed as a child. The cause of a child’s bedwetting will often inform how best to progress when it comes to treatment.

Regards,
Dr Cathrine

Ask Dr Cathrine a question