Female Hormones and Multiple Sclerosis



Etemadifar M^{1, 2, 3} ; Fatehi F^{1, 2, 3, 4} ; Sahraian MS⁵ ; Moinfar Z⁵ ; Minagar A⁶ ; Maghzi AH^{2, 3}
Source: Women and Multiple Sclerosis Published:2010

Abstract

Females are not only more prone to autoimmune diseases, but are also more exposed to relevant variations of sex hormone levels that physiologically go along with women's life. Diseases such as systemic lupus erythematosus, rheumatoid arthritis and multiple sclerosis are significantly more common in women. Multiple clinical observations demonstrate waxing and waning of multiple sclerosis symptoms during the normal menstrual cycle which guides to discern the possible role of female hormones such as estradiol and progesterone in development, clinical course, and respond to treatment of multiple sclerosis. Likewise, in most women, pregnancy does have favorable impact on clinical symptoms of autoimmune diseases in general and in multiple sclerosis in particular. Various studies have demonstrated that the incidence of relapses plunges throughout the pregnancy and rises dramatically during the first 3 months following the delivery. This chapter aims to investigate and discuss the effects of female hormones on pathophysiology, clinical course, and neuroimaging of multiple sclerosis. © 2010 Nova Science Publishers, Inc.