Evidence map›Paper›PMID 33738549›Full record

ReviewRheumatology international2021

The Beighton Score as a measure of generalised joint hypermobility.

Sabeeha Malek, Emma J Reinhold, Gemma S Pearce

Open access · hybridAbstract readReview
PubMed Full text at PMC Publisher
In one paragraph

Review in Rheumatology international, 2021. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 108 papers, 5 of them syntheses that pooled it.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
108citing papers in PubMed, 5 pooled it
22.0field-weighted citation impact, top 1% of its field
1 · What the graph read from it

What it found

Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.

The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.

2 · The registry

The trial behind it

Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.

Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.

3 · Its place in the literature

Who cites it

108 citing papers in PubMed, 5 syntheses or guidelines pooled it, 195 citations in OpenAlex.

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  11. Association between symptoms of pediatric postural orthostatic tachycardia syndrome and joint hypermobility syndromes.Clinical autonomic research : official journal of the Clinical Autonomic Research Society · 2026
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48 more citing papers are in PubMed but not listed here.

4 · The record

Corrections and comments

PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.

5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

3 authors at 3 institutions in 1 country.

Sabeeha MalekCentre for Mechanochemical Cell Biology, Division of Biomedical Sciences, Warwick Medical School, University of Warwick, Coventry, CV4 7AL, UK. s.malek@warwick.ac.uk.ORCID http://orcid.org/0000-0002-6130-541X
Emma J ReinholdRoyal College of General Practitioners, London, UK.ORCID http://orcid.org/0000-0002-9082-2926
Gemma S PearceFaculty of Health and Life Sciences, School of Psychological, Social and Behavioural Sciences, Coventry University, Coventry, CV1 5FB, UK.ORCID http://orcid.org/0000-0002-2928-0048
Coventry University · GBRoyal College of General Practitioners · GBUniversity of Warwick · GB

Funding

No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.

6 · The paper itself

Abstract

The Beighton Score (BS) is a set of manoeuvres in a nine-point scoring system, used as the standard method of assessment for Generalised Joint Hypermobility (GJH). It was originally developed as an epidemiological tool used in screening large populations for GJH, but later adopted as a clinical tool for diagnostic purposes. Its ability to truly reflect GJH remains controversial, as joints within the scoring system are predominantly of the upper limb and disregard many of the major joints, preventing a direct identification of GJH. Furthermore, a consistent finding in the literature whereby the BS failed to identify hypermobility in joints outside the scoring system suggests its use as an indirect indicator of GJH is also not viable. As such, the collective findings of this review demonstrate a need for a change in clinical thinking. The BS should not be used as the principle tool to differentiate between localised and generalised hypermobility, nor used alone to exclude the presence of GJH. Greater emphasis should be placed on a clinician's judgement to identify or exclude GJH, according to its full definition.

Indexed as

Ehlers-Danlos SyndromeFemaleHumansJoint InstabilityMalePhysical ExaminationReproducibility of ResultsarticularBeighton scoreEhlers–Danlos SyndromeGeneralised joint hypermobilityJoint hypermobilityJoint hypermobility syndromeRange of motion

Identifiers

PMID33738549
PMCPMC8390395
OpenAlexW3138122971

What OpenQuestion holds

Textmetadata
LicenceCC BY
Read underepoch 390

Registered trials

None linked

Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.