Education offers neuroprotective effects against the progression of dementia. Limited information exists about such effects in non-Western populations, where formal education can be critically reduced. Here we examined dementia and education effects on brain morphometry in elderly healthy and mild cognitive impaired Indians. Morphometry revealed atrophy in areas typically related to MCI, enlarged lateral ventricles and reduced hippocampal volume. Education increased cortical thickness atrophy in the parahippocampal and temporal cortices (MCI group). This supports the cognitive reserve hypothesis, in which inter-individual differences in task processing is believed to allow some individuals to better cope with the neuropathology associated with dementia.
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