Education Level and Huntington's Disease Progression: A Retrospective Cohort Analysis in Western China

BACKGROUND: Identifying the effect of modifiable socio-environmental factors on Huntington's disease (HD) symptoms onset and progression is of great value. The role of educational attainment in HD clinical characteristics has not been elucidated. OBJECTIVES: To clarify the effect of education attainment on the age of motor symptoms onset and clinical progression of HD patients from Western China. METHODS: A total of 244 adult-onset Chinese HD patients were included in the analysis. Linear regression, Kaplan-Meier analysis, and Cox regression analysis were conducted to assess the effect of education on the disease progression in HD. RESULTS: Higher education level was significantly associated with slower decline in cognitive performance, as indicated by the Symbol Digit Modality Test (β = 0.339 [95% CI, 0.047, 0.632], p = 0.026), while it exhibited no association with the progression of other symptoms. CONCLUSIONS: The present findings suggest that education attainment is associated with a milder cognitive decline in Chinese HD patients.