Endometriosis & MS

[2nd generation MS survivor]

I strongly believe there is a connection. I know that when you are pregnant MS almost completely stops the progression of MS particularly in the end of pregnancy. Obliviously there is a connection with hormones and MS. I am a second generation MS AND endo survivor plus my mother share thyroid issues and ovarian cysts issues. Om not sure all the details just know my personal experiences. I also know Europe is currently treating MS with prolactin a pregnancy hormone and having wonderful results.

[ms382012]

re: endo and autoimmunity

Endometriosis could, I suppose, be a trigger for an autoimmune disorder, as the cells are growing where they shouldn't be. The endo cells bleed each month as they are affected by the same hormonal fluctuations as the one in the "right" place. But the blood has nowhere to go, staying in the abdominal cavity and can cause the inflammation to spread across the abdomen. I have never had endometriosis but I had adenomyosis, which is caused by the endometrium infiltrating the muscle of the uterus. I had a hysterectomy in 2011 and my "Irritable bowel syndrome" mysteriously vanished. Fancy that.

But my "juvenile" RA seemed to ramp back up after the surgery. I had almost gotten my old life back. I looked forward to gardening and hiking, playing sports. I honestly can't remember if my week-long muscle spasms in both legs, leaving me almost unable to walk and unable to climb stairs, happened before or after the surgery. I have no doubt that the surgery triggered my autoimmune responses out of remission.

But the reason most autoimmune diseases go into remission during pregnancy is the necessity of suppression of the immune system to avoid spontaneous rejection of the developing baby. It is hormone related, but the only effect it should have is to suppress any immune response. I don't think that female hormones would cause MS.

[SNOOPY]

I know that when you are pregnant MS almost completely stops the progression of MS particularly in the end of pregnancy.

Unfortunately, this is not necessarily true. Pregnancy does not protect women from having an exacerbation. Exacerbations can happen when pregnant.

[smittyditty]

I am in limbo and this post is older but just wanted to add to the opinions.
I am due to have a urodynamics/ Lumbar puncture tomorrow and hopefully will have an answer.

I have PCOS and was diagnosed when I was 20. I had a period once I turned 18 and then only once or twice a year.
While it is true that PCOS has higher testosterone it is also true that birth can reverse this. Or as they like to say balance back out the hormones.

After my first birth this was not the case, however with my second child it was. I however would not say it was balanced. My testosterone level dropped from 169 to 35 and my progesterone level was down to less than .05.

So my point is even though the hormones seem at what the doctors say would help with MS(meaning higher testosterone levels) you also have to take in account the reaction after having birth.

I will also be tested for endo on my next appointment with the uro and this could be due to the second birth being a c-section. C-sections have been shown to increase risk of endo. During both my pregnancies I had MS symptoms.

So I think these problems could be intertwined. As in you have hormonal problems that trigger the MS. You may have a chance at having MS if your body is already predisposed to have hormonal imbalance. However this chance would probably be about the equivalent of also having diabetes due to PCOS. Lets also remember this is one doctor.

It could be that due to the drop in my testosterone level after births that it triggered the MS that was already there. IF I hadn't had those births and the high rate of testosterone would I still be ok? who knows.

[aitch10]

Unfortunately, this is not necessarily true. Pregnancy does not protect women from having an exacerbation. Exacerbations can happen when pregnant.

Indeed. I don't have endo, my mom(who also has MS) doesn't have endo, and though my first pregnancy was blissfully free of relapses my second was full of them.