Dr. Clarence Gonstead redefined Chiropractic. He continues to be one of the most influential figures in the history of Chiropractic and the Gonstead System lives as a shining example of the best that Chiropractic has to offer.

Gonstead grew up repairing tractors and automobiles, driving his later accomplishments in applying mechanical principles to the human spine. At age 19, he developed severe rheumatoid arthritis that left him bedridden. His aunt sought the help of her chiropractor and after a course of adjustments he could walk again.

This was a life-changing experience for Clarence; he enrolled in Palmer College of Chiropractic and graduated in 1923. Working as an automotive engineer, Gonstead used his mechanical experience to rethink prevailing ideas about the mechanism of subluxation. At the time B.J. Palmer’s “bone-out-of-place” theory was predominate. Dr. Gonstead challenged this through the application of biomechanical principles. He developed the Disc Theory that subluxation began at the intervertebral disc where damaged tissue inflammation created “nerve pressure”.

His theory that subluxation arose from the disc was revolutionary. Dr. Gonstead created a new method of correcting vertebral subluxation based on this principle, which was restoring the optimal relationship between the vertebrae and it’s disc.

Dr. Gonstead pioneered several inventions to maximize the efficiency of chiropractic. His development of the Nerv-o-scope allows chiropractors to objectively find a subluxation by measuring bilateral temperature differences in the spine. Dr. Gonstead also designed the Cervical Chair and Knee-Chest tables which improves the adjustment by giving the advantage of gravity and spinal mechanics

Dr. Gonstead became internationally known. He built his clinic in Mt. Horeb, Wisconsin. In order to meet the demand, Dr. Gonstead built an airstrip and hotel for patients who traveled the world to receive his care. Dr. Gonstead never went to bed on the same day that he woke up, adjusting patients all day and often working late into the next morning. During the polio epidemic that swept the United States, Dr. Gonstead did not lose a single patient to the disease.

Dr. Gonstead was revolutionary. He expanded a chiropractic system that analyzed a patient’s problem through multiple diagnostic criteria and correlation of findings resulting in the most accurate possible diagnosis of a patient’s specific problem.

Through his legacy, the Gonstead System remains the standard of excellence in the chiropractic profession and for all those who seek out Chiropractic.