For Immediate Release September 19, 2003
Contact: Robert Cavanaugh
732-632-1586
New Jersey Neuroscience Institute Pediatric Sleep Disorder
Center:
Bedwetting Is About More Than Wet Sheets
EDISON, NJ-Discovering that a child is wetting the bed can be very disconcerting for the parent. “It should be disconcerting, but not for the reason most people assume,” comments Dr. Okey Anene, director of the Children’s Neurological Center at New Jersey Neuroscience Institute in Edison. “Bedwetting is cause for concern beyond the soiled sheets. For the child, bedwetting can result in embarrassment, self-esteem issues, fear and anxiety. But parents should recognize that bedwetting is more than just an embarrassment, it can be symptomatic of a medical or psychological condition that needs immediate attention,” says Anene.
Diabetes, urinary tract infections, psychiatric disorders, and sleep disorders could be the root of the problem. At the Pediatric Sleep Disorder Center at NJNI, children suffering from bedwetting (usually with a pattern of once or twice monthly) are evaluated to determine if the cause of the bedwetting is a sleep disorder.
“Sleep disorders are more common and more serious than many recognize,”
says Anene. It’s been estimated that between seven and eight million children
in the US suffer from some type of sleep disorder.” Sleep disorders in
children can present themselves in a number of ways, including:
- Bedtime resistance
- Snoring
- Noisy or troubled breathing
- Breathing through ones mouth
- Difficulty in falling or staying asleep
- Night terrors
- Sleep walking
- Bed-wetting
- Excessive sleepiness
- Hyperactivity
- Irritability
- Difficulty in school
Sleep disorders impact one's ability to function during awake times, as well has impact long-term health and wellness. In children, they can result from or lead to learning difficulties which have long-term impact on their quality of life. “Early and accurate diagnosis, preventative measures, and treatment are essential to managing sleep disorders,” says Anene. “When a sleep disorder is diagnosed and treated early, the impact is minimized.” Treating the sleep disorder often resolves the occurrence of bedwetting. Treatment for bedwetting may include behavior modification, alarm devices, or medication depending on the root cause of the wetting incidents.
Adds Anene, “It is important to have a multi-disciplinary approach for proper evaluation and treatment as it allows the disorder to be reviewed from many different perspectives."
The Pediatric Sleep Center at NJNI is a multi-disciplinary sleep disorder center dedicated to children and young adults. The Center offers evaluation and management of a full range of sleep concerns, from the most common disorders to the most rare. Founded in 1999 and led by renowned sleep specialist Arthur S. Walters, MD, the facility offers state-of-the-art care in a conducive setting. The staff at the Center includes physicians board certified in sleep medicine, board certified pediatric neurologists, nurse clinicians, registered polysomnographic technologists, psychologists, and social workers. Pediatric pulmonologists, pediatric cardiologists, pediatric critical care physicians, pediatric general surgeons, and ear, nose and throat surgeons are readily available as consultants.
The New Jersey Neuroscience Institute at JFK Medical Center is a comprehensive
facility designed exclusively for the diagnosis, treatment, and research of
complex neurological disorders in adults and children. Services offered at the
Institute include programs in spine and brain tumors, dizziness and balance
disorders, epilepsy, cerebral palsy, stroke, and movement disorders. As a department
of Seton Hall University's School of Graduate Medical Education, NJNI serves
as the clinical setting for SHU's residency training in neurology. For more
information on the New Jersey Neuroscience Institute, call 732-321-7950 or visit
the facility online at www.njneuro.org.