THE ROLE OF FAMILY HISTORY IN PREDICTING RESPONSE TO DESMOPRESSIN IN NOCTURNAL ENURESIS

The response to desmopressin in 71 children with nocturnal enuresis wa s evaluated to determine whether a family history of nocturnal enuresi s could be helpful in predicting which patients would respond. The ove rall response rate to desmopressin (53 of 71 patients, 75%) was compar able to previous studies. A poor response was associated with a negati ve family history of nocturnal enuresis (1 of 14 patients, 7%), wherea s the response in those with a positive family history was excellent ( 52 of 57 patients, 91%). We conclude from this preliminary retrospecti ve study that a high rate of success may be predicted when desmopressi n is used in patients with familial nocturnal enuresis, whereas less o ptimism is warranted when no family history of nocturnal enuresis can be elicited. This observation should be validated in a larger, prospec tive clinical study.