2016 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved. This chapter will focus on sex differences and the role of gonadal steroids in three neurologic diseases: cerebrovascular stroke (ischemic), multiple sclerosis (MS), and epilepsy. In the case of stroke, younger women are less likely to sustain a stroke than men; however, with age, females have a higher incidence of stroke and more severe outcomes than males. In preclinical studies, estrogen improves stroke outcomes in young animals, while its effects on older animals are controversial. In contrast, MS occurs more often in women compared with men, but paradoxically, ovarian/pregnancy hormones may be beneficial for patients with MS. In the case of epilepsy, women exhibit greater fluctuations in seizure susceptibility, usually associated with the menstrual cycle. The latter condition is called catamenial epilepsy and studies indicate that progestin therapy may offer benefit for this type of epilepsy. This chapter will also describe the role of inflammation in these diseases.
