Infertility Treatment May Worsen MS Symptoms

Oct. 3, 2012 -- There is growing evidence that infertility treatments raise relapse rates in women with multiple sclerosis.

In a new study, 3 out of 4 women with MS had increased disease activity following assisted reproductive technology (ART) infertility treatments.

The study was small, with just 16 infertile MS patients getting the treatments.

But a second study with twice as many patients, published just a few months ago, also suggested that infertility treatments can bring on or worsen MS symptoms.

Timothy Coetzee, PhD, who is chief research officer for the National MS Society, says it is increasingly clear that hormones -- particularly sex hormones -- play an important role in MS.

This research highlights an issue that needs further study, he says. When we manipulate hormones to achieve a pregnancy, there may be a significant impact on MS symptoms.

Multiple sclerosis is an autoimmune disease that affects about 400,000 people in the U.S. and 2.5 million people worldwide.

Twice as many women as men are diagnosed.Women are often diagnosed in their childbearing years.

Most women with MS are no more likely to suffer from infertility as other women. But fertility can be affected in women treated with certain MS drugs.

When MS and infertility coincide, patients seek assisted reproduction technology to achieve pregnancy, says Jorge Correale, MD, of Argentinas Raul Carrea Institute for Neurological Research.

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Infertility Treatment May Worsen MS Symptoms