Nocturia

NOCTURNAL POLYURIA

If you are getting up during the night to urinate (pass water), then you may be experiencing nocturia

About

Nocturia is the medical term for the condition of excessive urination during the night. It is most common amongst mature men but can affect women too. Our bodies are designed to produce less- but highly-concentrated urine at night, in order to prevent interrupted sleep patterns caused by nocturnal urination.

Need to know

Symptoms of nocturia

Symptoms of nocturia include:

needing to make several trips to the toilet during the night to urinate
disturbed sleep patterns as a result of waking up due to the need to pass urine

Screening and diagnosis

Your consultant will take a detailed history of the problem to establish what is normal for you — and what isn’t. The main diagnostic tool is the 'bladder diary'. Based on the information you record in your diary, your consultant can diagnose you as having polyuria, nocturnal polyuria or bladder storage problems. The timing of urinating, the number of times you urinate and the volume of urine passed should all be recorded in the diary. Fluid intake should also be recorded.

Potential treatment options

Treatments vary and may include a number of options.

Alterations in diet and lifestyle (for example reducing the amount of fluids you drink before bed), retraining your bladder, management with prescribed medications and clinical trials.
Desmoprissin is an anti-diuretic drug similar to the natural substance vasoprissin. This is made by the body to control the amount of urine your kidneys produce.
Desmoprissin lowers urine production and may be administered by your consultant.
The Daytime Impact Sleep Study (DAISS) is designed to assess the relationship between getting up at night to void objective and subjective sleep quality, and daytime performance, as well as the impact of desmoprissin on these factors.