Voiding Diaries, Questionnaires Inconsistent for Diagnosing Enuresis

THURSDAY, Oct. 6, 2022 (HealthDay News) — For treatment-naive children with enuresis, diagnosis is inconsistent using questionnaires and voiding diaries, according to a study recently published online in Frontiers in Pediatrics.

Sevasti Karamaria, from Ghent University in Belgium, and colleagues examined the correlation, consistency, and added value of the new versus the old International Children’s Continence Society (ICCS) definitions for differentiating enuresis into monosymptomatic enuresis (MNE) and non-MNE, and documented the prevalence of the two subtypes. Ninety treatment-naive children were assessed with the questionnaire and voiding diary.

The researchers found that with each method, almost 30 percent of the children had a different diagnosis; inconsistencies were observed between the methods in registering lower urinary tract symptoms. A high correlation was seen for both methods in identifying MNE, but not non-MNE. The incidence of MNE was significantly lower according to the latest ICCS definitions (7 percent versus 48 percent with the old standardization).

“In conclusion, this study demonstrates that most patients with enuresis have some lower urinary tract symptoms and should therefore be classified as non-MNE,” the authors write. “It confirms the inconsistencies between the clinical management tool and the voiding diary in differentiating MNE from non-MNE, where the data are complementary.”

One author disclosed financial ties to the pharmaceutical industry.

Abstract/Full Text