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As part of the study project of the pictorial cycle, attributed to Saturnino Gatti, in the church of San Panfilo at Villagrande di Tornimparte (AQ), image analyses were performed in order to document the general conservation conditions of the surfaces, and to map the different painting materials to be subsequently examined using spectroscopic techniques. To acquire the images, radiation sources, ranging from ultraviolet to near infrared, were used; analyses of ultraviolet fluorescence (UVF), infrared reflectography (IRR), infrared false colors (IRFC), and optical microscopy in visible light (OM) were carried out on all the panels of the mural painting of the apsidal conch. The Hypercolorimetric Multispectral Imaging (HMI) technique was also applied in selected areas of two panels. Due to the accurate calibration system, this technique is able to obtain high-precision colorimetric and reflectance measurements, which can be repeated for proper surface monitoring. The integrated analysis of the different wavelengths’ images—in particular, the ones processed in false colors—made it possible to distinguish the portions affected by retouching or repainting and to recover the legibility of some figures that showed chromatic alterations of the original pictorial layers. The IR reflectography, in addition to highlighting the portions that lost materials and were subject to non-original interventions, emphasized the presence of the underdrawing, which was detected using the spolvero technique. UVF photography led to a preliminary mapping of the organic and inorganic materials that exhibited characteristic induced fluorescence, such as a binder in correspondence with the original azurite painting or the wide use of white zinc in the retouched areas. The collected data made it possible to form a better iconographic interpretation. Moreover, it also enabled us to accurately select the areas to be investigated using spectroscopic analyses, both in situ and on micro-samples, in or

Background: Nowadays, more than 90% of patients with congenital heart disease (CHD) reach adulthood. However, long-term impact on neurodevelopment and executive functioning in adults with CHD are not completely understood. Purpose: To investigate the self- and informant-reported executive functioning in adults with CHD operated in childhood. Material and methods: Longitudinal study of a cohort of patients (n = 194, median age: 49.9 [46.1–53.8]) who were operated in childhood (< 15 years old) between 1968 and 1980 (median follow-up time: 45 [40–53] years) for one of the following diagnoses: atrial septal defect (ASD), ventricular septal defect (VSD), pulmonary stenosis (PS), tetralogy of Fallot (ToF) or transposition of the great arteries (TGA). Behavior Rating Inventory of Executive Function-Adult version (BRIEF-A) questionnaire was used to assess self- and informant-reported executive functioning. Results: 40–53 years after surgery, the CHD group did show significantly better executive functioning compared to the norm data. No significant difference was found between mild CHD (ASD, VSD and PS) and moderate/severe CHD (ToF and TGA). Higher education, NYHA class 1 and better exercise capacity were associated with better self-reported executive functioning, whereas females or patients taking psychiatric or cardiac medications reported worse executive functioning. Conclusions: Our findings suggest favorable outcomes (comparable to normative data) regarding executive functioning in adults with CHD, both self- and informant-reported. However, further study is warranted to explore more in detail the different cognitive domains of executive functioning in these patients. Graphical abstract: [Figure not available: see fulltext.].

Introduction: Nowadays, more than 90% of patients with congenital heart disease (CHD) reach adulthood. However, knowledge about their psychosocial functioning is limited. Methods: Longitudinal cohort study of patients (n = 204, mean age: 50 years, 46.1% female) who were operated during childhood (< 15 years) between 1968 and 1980 for one of the following diagnoses: atrial septal defect, ventricular septal defect, pulmonary stenosis, tetralogy of Fallot or transposition of the great arteries. Psychosocial functioning was measured every 10 years, using standardized and validated questionnaires. Results were compared with the general Dutch population and over time. Results: After a median follow-up of 45 [40–53] years adults with CHD had a significantly lower educational level, occupation level and employment rate, but better health-related quality of life and emotional functioning compared with normative data. Patients with moderate/severe defects reported significantly more self-perceived physical restrictions and lack of physical strength due to their CHD. Compared to 2011, in 2021 patients considered their CHD as more severe and they felt more often disadvantaged. Conclusions: Overall, despite a lower education, occupation level and employment rate, our sample of patients with CHD had a positive perception of their life and their psychosocial functioning was even better than the norm. Although the quality of life was very good, their view on their disease was more pessimistic than 10 years ago, especially for patients with moderate/severe CHD. Graphic abstract: [Figure not available: see fulltext.].

With Motor imagery (MI), movements are mentally rehearsed without overt actions; this procedure has been adopted in motor rehabilitation, primarily in brain-damaged patients. Here we rather tested the clinical potentials of MI in purely orthopaedic patients who, by definition, should maximally benefit of mental exercises because of their intact brain. To this end we studied the recovery of gait after total knee arthroplasty and evaluated whether MI combined with physiotherapy could speed up the recovery of gait and even limit the occurrence of future falls. We studied 48 patients at the beginning and by the end of the post-surgery residential rehabilitation program: half of them completed a specific MI training supported by computerized visual stimulation (experimental group); the other half performed a non-motoric cognitive training (control group). All patients also had standard physiotherapy. By the end of the rehabilitation, the experimental group showed a better recovery of gait and active knee flexion-extension movements, and less pain. The number of falls or near falls after surgery was significantly lower in the experimental group. These results show that MI can improve gait abilities and limit future falls in orthopaedic patients, without collateral risks and with limited costs.