INTRODUCTION NOCTURIA IS DEFINED AS A VOLUNTARY VOIDING THAT OCCURS AFTER AN INDIVIDUAL HAS GONE TO SLEEP. Nocturia is often reported as a source of sleep disturbance in older

NOCTURIA IS DEFINED AS A VOLUNTARY VOIDING THAT OCCURS AFTER AN INDIVIDUAL HAS GONE TO SLEEP. Nocturia is often reported as a source of sleep disturbance in older adults. Many older adults have bladder control problems in addition to other ailments. In otherwise healthy adults, nocturia is sometimes viewed only as a bothersome symptom of an underlying bladder problem, rather than as a serious contributor to morbidity/mortality, as a result of an increased likelihood of hip fractures associated with a fall.1 Older men who have nocturia are often assumed to have benign prostatic hypertrophy and older women with nocturia are often assumed to have an unstable bladder or reduced bladder capacity associated with aging.2 However, nocturia may occur as a result of overproduction of urine, rather than diminished bladder capacity or prostatic hypertrophy. Sleep researchers have demonstrated that nocturia is more common in patients with obstructive sleep apnea (OSA).1, 3, 4 A gap exists in our understanding of the relationship between urine production and OSA.