Bed-Wetting

Your child may wet the bed -- or accidentally pass urine -- at night while he is sleeping. This is called nocturnal enuresis. It's not at all unusual for a child to wet the bed at night until he is five or six years old. Once a child has reached school age, however, he should not be having frequent trouble controlling his bladder or bowel movements. If he is, it may be due to a physical or psychological problem, and you may want to discuss this with your pediatrician.

This decision support guide will help you to determine whether your child's bed-wetting is normal, and to know when to contact your pediatrician for medical care. Please note, this guide is not meant to take the place of a visit to your pediatrician's office.

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Online Medical Reviewer: Faculty of Harvard Medical School Date Last Reviewed: 5/26/2006 Date Last Modified: 5/18/2006 Source: from Harvard Health Decision Guides, Harvard Health Publications, Copyright © 2007 by President and Fellows of Harvard College. All rights reserved. Used with permission of StayWell.

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