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Arch Pediatr Adolesc Med. 1998;152:930-931.

	Since this article does not have an abstract, we have provided the first 150 words of the full text and any section headings.

Donoghue et al¹ reports a hyponatremic seizure in a 10-year-old boy with nocturnal enuresis who was treated with desmopressin. The hyponatremia apparently developed without a history of excessive fluid intake, the evidence for which includes a lack of history of excessive fluid intake and the absence of physical signs of hypervolemia 24 hours before the seizure. The child was hypertensive at presentation with the seizure. Notwithstanding the absence of peripheral edema, this suggests the presence of hypervolemia.

It is axiomatic that hyponatremia due to water intoxication develops due to the presence of excess water. In the child described by Donoghue et al, the amount of water ingested was certainly too much, given the presence of the desmopressin. The authors do not specify the exact quantity of water ingested by the child during the days before the seizure. Beach et al² calculated that to avoid water intoxication, patients should be instructed . . . [Full Text of this Article]