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Annals of the Rheumatic Diseases logoLink to Annals of the Rheumatic Diseases
. 1981 Dec;40(6):541–546. doi: 10.1136/ard.40.6.541

A clinical and echocardiographic study of patients with the hypermobility syndrome.

R Grahame, J C Edwards, D Pitcher, A Gabell, W Harvey
PMCID: PMC1000826  PMID: 7332373

Abstract

Three age- and symptom-matched groups of patients with a hypermobility score of 5-9, 3-4, and 0-2 (controls), respectively, were examined for clinical and echocardiographic evidence of mitral valve prolapse and other stigmata of a collagen disorder. Mitral valve prolapse, a reduced upper segment/lower segment mitral ratio, reduced skin thickness, spinal anomalies, and a history of fracture were found to be significantly commoner among the hypermobile patients than the controls. The data suggest that the so-called hypermobility syndrome, far from being a benign locomotor disorder of healthy persons, may be a forme fruste of a hereditary disorder of connective tissue.

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Selected References

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