Parents are often unsure what to do about bedwetting, should you start with medication for bedwetting or use a bedwetting alarm? It is very annoying when your child wets the bed. Most children will get over the problem as they get older. However, bedwetting has enormous consequences for the child. Children often become very insecure as a result and there is a risk of developing a negative self-image. The result is that bedwetting becomes a latent problem that makes all parties unhappy.
When a child reaches the age of 7 years old, bedwetting is considered to be a problem. There are various solutions against bedwetting. The first choice is to use a bedwetting alarm; if this does not help, your child may be prescribed medication for bedwetting.
Two types of medication against bedwetting
Minrin is the most commonly prescribed medicine against bedwetting. The medication for bedwetting reduces urine production while sleeping. Normally, the production of urine during the night is lower than during the day. The ADH hormone is responsible for that. Sometimes in children, the production of ADH is not lower at night than it is during the day. This causes the amount of urine to not fit in the bladder at night.
If this is the case, the GP prescribes medication for bedwetting. Minrin is synthetic ADH. This medicine for bedwetting ensures that . This medicine reduces water excretion during the night. The fluid retained by the body at night is excreted during the day when the medicine wears off. This medication against bedwetting can be administered for a longer or shorter period. It is also useful to use this medication against bedwetting during sleepovers and school camps.
Minrin Melt
A new medication for bedwetting is the minrin melt tablet. There is synthetic ADH in Minrin melt, which reduces the bladder’s production of fluid at night. The benefit of Minrin melt is that the tablet can be placed under the tongue and does not require water. Many children find it unpleasant to have to swallow pills. This is no longer necessary with this medicine against bedwetting.
Bedwetting medication for an overactive bladder
Oxybutynin is a medicine prescribed to children who suffer from an overactive bladder. An overactive bladder is when your bladder produces too much urine and the child constantly feels the need to urinate. If this is the case, before you start using medication for bedwetting, you can start bladder training. Bladder training is when you start practising holding up urine during the day. By practising this, the bladder stretches and can hold a larger volume of urine at night. In this training, giving medication for bedwetting can help increase bladder volume.
A larger bladder reduces the likelihood of bedwetting. A rarely reported side effect of anticholinergics is reduced heat tolerance with the risk of heat stroke due to inadequate effective transpiration at high outside temperatures. Expert opinion recommends additional precooling measures above 30º C or stopping anticholinergic administration in children.
Medication against bedwetting
The medicine against bedwetting Furosemide (lasix) is a medicine that causes the body to dehydrate, so to speak. This medicine against bedwetting drains the body as it were so that less urine is produced at night.
If you are unsure about your child’s bedwetting, we always recommend contacting your GP. They can tell you whether it is recommended to start with a bedwetting alarm or whether it is wise to start with medication. According to the guidelines, it will always be examined whether your child’s behaviour needs to be modified by using a bedwetting alarm instead of starting with medication.
