ESSENTIAL ENURESIS: SUCCESSFUL TREATMENT BASED ON PHYSIOLOGICAL CONCEPTS

ENURESIS is one of the most harassing of medical problems which may affect a family. During childhood, it is exceeded in frequency of incidence by few conditions other than trauma and the acute infectious diseases. The considerable anxiety and labour which are caused by enuresis may be prolonged for years, so that these factors combine to make it an important part of peedtatrtc practice. The magnitude of the problem is epitomized in the "Memorandum Prepared by the Joint Committee of the British Medical Association and Magistrates' Association on Psychiatry and the Law" (British Medical Association, 1948). Unfortunately, the conclusions of the committee do not offer much encouragement for sufferers. This paper describes the author's concepts of the basic nature of the condition, the application of these concepts to a method of treatment, and the satisfactory results obtained by using this method alone, in over fifty consecutive refractory cases. In a preliminary communication (Crosby, 1949a, 1949b) I gave a description of experiences in general practice which drew my attention to the natural history of enuresis.