Bedwetting is not caused by emotional problems, and, more importantly, it can be treated, according to an expert panel of pediatricians, pediatric urologists, and pedia- tric kidney specialists convened by Aventis Pasteur, a drug company. They estimate that 5 million to 7 million children aged 6 or more wet their beds, yet the condition -- known to doctors as nocturnal enuresis -- continues to be highly misunderstood and widely misdiagnosed.

It results from many factors, including sleep disturbances, overproduction of urine at night, and small bladder capacity, and is clearly a source of stress for the family, not to mention great embarrassment for the child.

Through a combination of behavioral therapies plus med- icine to reduce urine production at night, bedwetting can be controlled. The panel recommends that parents and pediatrician work together to derive the best therapy for the child, and also that they pay attention to the child's emotional well-being as a solution is found.