Association between constipation and childhood nocturnal enuresis in Taiwan: a population-based matched case-control study

BACKGROUND: The relationship between constipation and childhood nocturnal enuresis (NE) has been previously reported; however, this relationship remains controversial. The present study aimed to evaluate the association between constipation and childhood NE. METHODS: Data from the Longitudinal Health Insurance Database 2000 (LHID 2000) of Taiwan National Health Insurance Research Database from 2000 to 2013 were collected. A total of 2286 children were enrolled in this study: a case group of 1143 children aged 5–18 years who were diagnosed with NE (NE group) and an age- and sex-matched control group of 1143 children without NE. Conditional logistic regression and odds ratio (OR) for NE were used to examine the association between constipation and childhood NE. RESULTS: The prevalence of NE in the case group (NE group, aged 5–18 years) was 1.03% from 2000 to 2013. The NE group had a higher percentage of constipation in 1 year before the diagnosis of NE. After stratification for sex, both boys and girls with constipation had higher OR for NE. With stratification for age, children aged 5–12 and 7–12 years had a higher OR for NE. CONCLUSIONS: Constipation is associated with childhood NE in Taiwan, particularly in children aged 5–7 and 7–12 years.