Desmopressin, sold under the trade name DDAVP among others, is a medication used to treat diabetes insipidus, bedwetting, hemophilia A, von Willebrand disease, and high blood urea levels.

[1] It is a synthetic analogue of vasopressin, the hormone that plays roles in the control of the body's osmotic balance, blood pressure regulation, kidney function,[2] and reduction of urine production.

Children taking DDAVP have 2.2 fewer wet nights per week and are 4.5 times more likely to sleep without disruption compared with placebo.

[6][7] Desmopressin (DDAVP) is usually the first line treatment for mild to moderate type 1 von Willebrand disease.

It is also used in the diagnostic workup for diabetes insipidus, in order to distinguish central from DI due to the kidneys.

This occurred due to hyponatremia, a deficit of the body's sodium levels, and the nasal spray is no longer approved for use in children in the United States.

[8] However, US drug regulators have said that desmopressin tablets can still be considered safe for treatment of nocturnal enuresis in children as long as the person is otherwise healthy.

[16] Additionally, desmopressin is able to enhance ACTH and cortisol release in normal subjects following oCRH administration, but not in patients with anorexia nervosa.

Compared to vasopressin, desmopressin's first amino acid has been deaminated, and the arginine at the eighth position is in the dextro rather than the levo form (see stereochemistry).