the gonstead difference
Gonstead chiropractic follows a system developed by an American chiropractor named Clarence S. Gonstead. It involves a very thorough analysis of a patient’s spine, which includes:
- The use of a skin temperature differential instrument (STDI) – this instrument aids the chiropractor in assessing the likelihood and location of nerve pressure in the spine.
- Observation and postural analysis – this involves examining the posture (global and regional) of the patient for potential mal-position of the joints within the spine.
- Palpation – this is a hands on approach whereby the chiropractor feels the spine for the mal-position and restriction to normal movement of the joints within the spine.
- X-ray analysis – this is a very detailed examination of radiographs of a patient’s entire spine. The analysis is specific to the Gonstead practitioner and aids in identification of direction of misalignment of the joints within the spine.
All of the above procedures are combined to come to the conclusion of whether there is any spinal dysfunction (subluxation) present and precisely how this should be corrected.
The correction of the subluxation as performed by the Gonstead chiropractor is a very precise and specific repositioning of the vertebra that is quite different to that performed by non-Gonstead chiropractors.
All of the doctors at specific chiropractic take pride in their ability to thoroughly assess and determine the precise cause of a patient’s complaint. Using the Gonstead system of chiropractic enables your chiropractor to accurately determine the exact direction of subluxation of the segments of your spine. With this knowledge they are able to specifically correct the subluxation and remove the resultant nerve pressure.