Desmopressin alone versus desmopressin and an anticholinergic in the first-line treatment of primary monosymptomatic nocturnal enuresis: a multicenter study.
BACKGROUND
The aim of this study was to compare the efficacy of combination therapy with desmopressin and an anticholinergic to desmopressin monotherapy for the first-line treatment of children with primary monosymptomatic nocturnal enuresis (PMNE).


METHODS
A total of 98 children with PMNE (male:female 71:27) aged 5-16 (mean age 7.18 ± 1.8) years were retrospectively analyzed. The patients were divided into two groups: the monotherapy group (n = 49) was given oral desmopressin alone, and the combination therapy group (n = 49) was given desmopressin plus an anticholinergic (propiverine 10 mg) as a first-line treatment. The two groups were matched according to the following criteria: age, gender, and baseline frequency of nocturnal enuresis. The efficacy was evaluated by International Children's Continence Society criteria at 1 and 3 months after treatment initiation.


RESULTS
The combination therapy group showed a higher rate of complete response than the monotherapy group (20.4 vs. 6.1% at 1 month of treatment; 46.9 vs. 22.4% at 3 months of treatment). In terms of success (response and complete response), there was a significant difference between the two groups after 3 months of treatment (P = 0.002).


CONCLUSIONS
Our results indicate that combination therapy with desmopressin plus an anticholinergic is quicker and more effective than desmopressin monotherapy in reducing PMNE.
Department of Pediatrics, Ajou University Hospital, Ajou University School of Medicine, Suwon, Republic of Korea.
Se Jin
SJ
Park
Ji Min
JM
Park
Ki Soo
KS
Pai
Tae Sun
TS
Ha
Sang Don
SD
Lee
Minki
M
Baek
D000293:Adolescent; D002648:Child; D002675:Child, Preschool; D018680:Cholinergic Antagonists / Q000008:administration & dosage*; D003894:Deamino Arginine Vasopressin / Q000008:administration & dosage / Q000627:therapeutic use*; D004359:Drug Therapy, Combination; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D053206:Nocturnal Enuresis / Q000188:drug therapy*; D012189:Retrospective Studies
D018680:Cholinergic Antagonists; D003894:Deamino Arginine Vasopressin