OBJECTIVES: To evaluate, in a prospective study, the effectiveness of a bladder 
training program. Daytime and/or nighttime wetting as a consequence of 
functional urinary incontinence is a common problem in childhood. Various 
treatment options are available, including with cognitive-behavioral "bladder 
training."
METHODS: Sixty patients (age 8 to 12 years) with urge incontinence or 
dysfunctional voiding were evaluated. After a no-treatment control period 
(average 6 months), patients underwent a 6-day bladder training course, which 
was offered either as inpatient or outpatient training, leaving the choice to 
the patients' parents. Clinical assessments were recorded at the beginning of 
the control period, at training entry and training completion, and after 1 
(inpatient training group only), 3, and 6 months.
RESULTS: Six months after training completion, 64.1% and 64.7% of the inpatient 
and outpatient groups with daytime wetting and 51.5% and 17.7% of the inpatient 
and outpatient groups with nighttime wetting were cured or had improved, 
respectively. The spontaneous cure rate during the 6-month control period was 0% 
to 20.5%. Of the inpatient group with urge incontinence, the functional bladder 
capacity increased by 15%. The children aged 9 to 12 years in the inpatient 
group had significantly greater cure rates than the 8-year-old children.
CONCLUSIONS: Compared with the control period, the bladder training program 
evaluated in this study resulted in significantly greater success rates. The 
results lead to the assumption that children with nighttime wetting treated in 
the inpatient training will succeed better than those in outpatient training. 
The cure and improvement rates of daytime wetting were greater than those for 
nighttime wetting.