Ideomotor Reflex
Historical document, translated for reference. It reflects medical knowledge of the 1920s–30s and is not medical advice.
Summary
The ideomotor reflex, also known as the reflex of attention or Piltz reflex, is characterized by pupil dilation when imagining dark objects or dark rooms, as well as when imagining efforts or painful sensations. This physiological reflex can also be observed in blind individuals with retinal damage.
Encyclopedia entry (1928–1936)
IDEOMOTOR REFLEX, reflex of attention, or Piltz reflex, is observed in the pupil and is characterized by dilation of the pupil when merely imagining dark objects, a dark room; imagining efforts being made, painful sensations also causes pupil dilation. There also exists an opposite reflex, described by Haab (see Haab's reflex). Piltz classifies the ideomotor reflex as physiological; it is also observed in blind individuals with damage to the fundus of the eye (retinitis pigmentosa). Lit.: Piltz J., Du reflexe pupillaire de l'attention, Province med., t. XIII, 1899.
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“Ideomotor Reflex.” Soviet Medical Encyclopedia. English translation of Bolshaya Meditsinskaya Entsiklopediya, 1st ed. (Moscow, 1928–1936), ed. N. A. Semashko. https://sovietmedicalencyclopedia.pages.dev/article/ideomotor-reflex/