CAIRO: Wetting oneself can be embarrassing at best, irritating at worst. But few are aware that it's a serious illness suffered by lots of young children. Children are expected to grow out of this behavior by the time they turn three or four. But when some children continue to wet the bed beyond this age, parents begin to realize, that it is a problem warranting their attention. The shocking rate of child abuse inflicted by parents on children who suffer from the problem indicates how serious an issue it is. In Dec. 2006 the media highlighted the case of a father who was arrested for cutting off his four-year-old boy's tongue and stubbing cigarettes into different parts of his body, as punishment for wetting himself. Last week a mother killed her son in Sharqeya, thinking that would stop it. Basma Abdel Nabi Taher, from Al Rahmaniya village, burnt her three-year-old son Mohamed Nabil's neck with a hot spoon as to punish him. The woman who said she had not been on good terms with her spouse, reportedly told the police that she woke up to find her son dead, before eventually confessing to her crime. "Children are expected to control their urinating habit by the age of four, but if this doesn't happen parents should refer to a specialist, advised Dr Adel Ashour, pediatrician and expert at the National Research Center in Cairo. "More often than not the problem is physical not psychological, as failure to control this behavior is caused by bladder or nerve inflammations, a rise in the sugar level or spine distortions, Ashour explained. He pointed out that pediatric clinics continue to receive a large number of cases. Their sheer volume deserves more than a passing glance. But it's difficult to compile accurate statistics as so many are reluctant to admit the problem. Ashour noted: "There are cases where children aged seven and eight keep wetting themselves. Bedwetting, referred to as enuresis by the medical community, is a common problem in children aged 5-12. It is estimated that 5 to 7 million children in the United States have a problem with bedwetting at any given time, that is about 10 percent of school-age children. "Besides the physical deficiency the pressures inflicted on children by a strict school routine, a divided home, a lifestyle marked by mobility and lack of stability could aggravate the illness for some children, said Ashour. He stressed: "But in my opinion the problem is mainly caused by the failure on the part of some parents to toilet-train their children before the age of 5. Specialists warn against using violence or harsh punishment to tackle the problem. A child who continues to wet himself when he is expected not to, should be referred to a pediatrician. But regrettably parents who use violence instead, according to psychiatrists, are those separated from their spouses or those with other types of family problems that sometimes reflect badly on their behavior towards their children. Dr Magdy Refae, a neuropsychiatrist and expert in forensic psychiatry, described how it is usually very difficult to overcome the habit of bedwetting, if the cause is psychological. "But when triggered by any flaw in the urinal system, it can also persist when not treated properly. You could get a person who does it during his wedding night. Refae explained that although this it is a prevalent problem, it cannot be easily assessed. "This is not only due to the absence of statistics but because each case is different, all depending on the personal and cultural backgrounds of each family, he said.
