A multicenter prospective study of the effect of imipramine and desmopressin on arousability in children with nocturnal enuresis

Abstract

Purpose: We performed a multicenter, prospective study to evaluate the efficacy of imipramine and desmopressin to improve arousability and prevent nocturnal enuresis (NE). Materials and methods: The total of 48 children with NE were given questionnaires that included a scoring system for the assessing arousal from sleep. They were assigned into two groups: group 1 (imipramine 25 mg, 3 girls and 16 boys, mean age 7.9 years), group 2 (desmopressin 0.2 mg, 9 girls and 9 boys, mean age 7.5 years). The assessment of arousability was repeated 2 weeks and 4 weeks after medication. Eleven children were excluded because of incomplete data. Results: Mean wetting events in group 1 decreased from 8.8 to 5.1 times (2 weeks) and 3.0 times (4 weeks) (p=0.009) versus 10.2 to 5.5 times (2 weeks) and 6.4 times (4 weeks) (p=0.007) for group 2. The mean threshold of arousability in group 1 was 4.9 (baseline), 4.4 (2 weeks), and 3.7 (4 weeks), and, for group 2, 5.1 (baseline), 4.8 (2 weeks), and 4.8 (4 weeks). The two groups were not different (p=0.14, p=0.73). Conclusions: Imipramine and desmopressin, which are commonly used in treating NE in Korea, influenced wetting events but not arousability.