Brain Volumes and Metacognitive Deficits in Knowledge of Self, Task and Strategies in Mathematics: A Preliminary Pilot One-Year Longitudinal Study in aMCI Patients Compared to Healthy Controls

Abstract

Metacognitive knowledge has been little investigated in aMCI patients. The aim of this study is to examine whether there are specific deficits in knowledge of self, task and strategies in mathematical cognition, due its importance for everyday functioning, mainly due to its importance for financial capacity in old age. A total of 24 patients with a diagnosis of aMCI and one-to-one 24 matched individuals (similar age, education and gender) were examined at three time points in a year with a number of neuropsychological tests and a slightly modified version of the Metacognitive Knowledge in Mathematics Questionnaire (MKMQ). We analyzed longitudinal MRI data regarding various brain areas for the aMCI patients. Results indicated that the aMCI group differed in all MKMQ subscale scores at the three time points compared to healthy controls. Correlations were found only for metacognitive avoidance strategies and left and right amygdala volumes at baseline, while after twelve months correlations were found for avoidance and right and left parahippocampal volumes. These preliminary results highlight the role of specific brain regions that could be used as indices in clinical practice for the detection of metacognitive knowledge deficits that are found in aMCI.