Patients with type 1 diabetes make up about 5 percent to 10 percent of all cases of diabetes. It most commonly appears in girls and boys when they are about 14 years old. Usually, type 1 diabetes is first diagnosed in children, teenagers, or young adults but it can occur at any age.

This study by Ferrara et al evaluated the prevalence of monosymptomatic nocturnal enuresis (MNE) in a group of children and adolescents prior to the onset of type 1 diabetes (Dt1). They reviewed 88 patients with Dt1 with a mean age of 15.2 years over a period of 3 years. All patients were evaluated with a questionnaire about the occurrence of MNE prior to the onset of Dt1. Each patient had normal urinalysis results, with no glycosuria, a normal urinary flow rate and no day-time symptoms such as urge incontinence or urgency.

The group found that 24/88 patients (27.2%) had nocturnal enuresis before the onset of Dt1. After beginning insulin treatment, 7 of these 24 patients (29.2%) continued to have MNE. Out of the 88 patients with Dt1, 7 (7.9%) had persistent MNE. The group concluded that the occurrence of MNE may overlap with symptoms of Dt1 but might be a separate entity due to its persistence despite controlling the Dt1 with insulin treatment. I feel that checking a urinalysis is paramount and that a first morning urine should be checked to ensure there is no concentrating defect.

Scandinavian Journal of Urology and Nephrology, 40(3): 238-240, May 2006

Written by Pasquale Casale, MD, a Contributing Editor with UroToday.

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