Pavlov and Konorsky: From conditioned reflexes to technologies of psychophysiological medical rehabilitation

Abstract

This work provides a concise overview of the scientific contributions of Yuri M. Konorsky, a prominent neurophysiologist and student of I. P. Pavlov. Konorsky conducted research in Pavlov’s laboratory, investigating various forms of conditioned reflexes. During the Great Patriotic War he studied brain wounds at a military hospital in Tbilisi. Concurrently, another of Pavlov’s students, P. S. Kupalov, developed the theory of shortened conditioned reflexes. These foundational studies were extended by N. N. Vasilevsky’s work on ‘non-classical’ conditioned reflexes. The possibility of regulating the states of cortical neurons, cell populations, and slow bioelectrical activity of the brain by means of biologically significant controlled reinforcement was proven. The ideas and impressive results of neurophysiologists of past years have been incorporated into a hardware and software complex with modern adaptive biofeedback system, forming the basis for psychophysiological support of standard technologies in therapy and medical rehabilitation measures were developed. Thus, more than a century systemic research on conditioned reflexes has culminated in the development of an advanced, ecologically safe technology capable of modulating autonomic nervous system and the brain rhythms through continuous physiological feedback.