Jennifer Mathews: Melissa Resnick loves being pregnant, but it's not just motherhood she loves. It's also because she has multiple sclerosis.
Melissa Resnick: When I was pregnant with Gabriella, I wanted to be pregnant for the rest of my life. I'd have a lot of kids, but yes, because you don't want the feeling to end.
Jennifer Mathews: That feeling is a total lack of MS symptoms. No more weakness in her limbs, no more vision problems or dizziness. She is expecting her second child, and once again, she's symptom-free. Doctors at UCLA credit a hormone called estriol.
Rhonda Voskuhl: We found that estriol treatment of mice, compared to placebo treatment, made the disease a lot better.
Jennifer Mathews: Estriol is a hormone that increases during pregnancy. Researchers gave estriol to six women with early-stage multiple sclerosis and all showed improvement.
Rhonda Voskuhl: What we found was that there was a reduction in the MRI lesions, the inflammatory legions of the brain went down when they were on treatment, went back up when they were off treatment, and then went back down again when they went back on treatment.
Jennifer Mathews: Estriol didn't help those with more advanced MS. Researchers hope that hormone may eventually be used to delay the progression into that advanced stage. In the meantime, women with MS can always get estriol the natural way, even if it's only temporary.
Melissa Resnick: I don't remember ever feeling that feeling of health, and then all of a sudden, here is this 9-10 months and you have that feeling.
Jennifer Mathews: This is Jennifer Mathews reporting.
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