Hypermobility - what everyone needs to know
Are you struggling with hypermobility? Are you sure you have hypermobility syndrome? This article will provide you with information on what hypermobility is and how to tell if you have it.
“Joints move freely beyond the normal expected range of motion for the specific joint”
Many people are dealing with hypermobile joints, yet it is still a very misunderstood condition.
What do you know about hypermobility?
Joint hypermobility is a syndrome where joints move freely beyond the normal expected range of motion for the specific joint. Now, it mostly affects younger people because the natural flexibility and joint mobility decreases with age. However, it’s not exclusive to a younger age group.
Although it’s benign, it can manifest into various really uncomfortable conditions. Such as tendonitis and bursitis, pain within your joints and the soft tissue, early onset osteoarthritis and carpal tunnel syndrome, joint sprains and dislocations due to increased instability around the joint.
Are you affected by hypermobility?
You might have been previously described as double-jointed or loose-jointed, or you might have noticed that your joints bend further than your peers or colleagues.
One of the tools that’s clinically used to diagnose hypermobility is called a Beighton score calculator. The maximum score is nine, but there are different cut-off points. Depending on the symptoms that you might present, the score will differ, whether the diagnosis can come with a score of one or four or five. Therefore, it can be quite tricky to self-diagnose and really know whether you are hypermobile or not.
Most importantly you’ll need to understand how to adapt your training and how to make sure you’re safe. Whether you play sports or you’re on the gym floor. So it’s always best to seek professional help and advice to assess the range of motion that you have and how to proceed with your training.