title: The protective effect of education on cognition in professional fighters.
abstract: Education has a protective effect against cognitive deficits following various forms of brain insult. Professional fighting (boxing and mixed martial arts) provides a model for assessing the impact of cumulative brain injuries on cognition and brain health. In the current cross-sectional observational study, we explore whether education would be protective against cognitive loss in fighters. We tested 141 professional fighters using a computerized neurocognitive battery, in addition to structural MRI. We used automated segmentation software to compute the volumes of various brain structures. We found fighters with high school education or less to show more associations between fight exposure and cognitive test scores. The relationship between brain structure volume and exposure did not differ based on education. These results are interpreted as putatively showing a protective effect of education on functional integrity in fighters, although longitudinal data and a larger sample size are required to further understand this relationship.
authors.affiliation: Lou Ruvo Center for Brain Health, Cleveland Clinic, Cleveland, OH, USA.
authors.forename: Sarah J
authors.initials: SJ
authors.lastname: Banks
authors.forename: Nancy
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Obuchowski
authors.forename: Wanyong
authors.initials: W
authors.lastname: Shin
authors.forename: Mark
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Lowe
authors.forename: Michael
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Phillips
authors.forename: Michael
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Modic
authors.forename: Charles
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Bernick
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D001265:Athletic Injuries / Q000150:complications* / Q000473:pathology; D001914:Boxing / Q000293:injuries*; D003072:Cognition Disorders / Q000209:etiology* / Q000517:prevention & control*; D004493:Education; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D016139:Martial Arts / Q000293:injuries*; D011597:Psychomotor Performance / Q000502:physiology; D011930:Reaction Time; D055815:Young Adult
keywords: Boxing; Chronic traumatic encephalopathy; Hippocampus; Mixed martial arts; Thalamus