Beighton score

Rheumatology

Also known as: Beighton-Score · Beighton skoru · Beighton score (generalised joint hypermobility)

What it is for

Nine-point clinical score of generalised joint hypermobility (GJH): four manoeuvres are tested on both sides (1 point per side) and one once.

Category	Description
Little finger	passive dorsiflexion of the fifth metacarpophalangeal joint beyond 90°: 1 point per hand (max. 2).
Thumb	passive apposition of the thumb to the flexor aspect of the forearm: 1 point per hand (max. 2).
Elbow	hyperextension beyond 10°: 1 point per elbow (max. 2).
Knee	hyperextension beyond 10°: 1 point per knee (max. 2).
Trunk	forward flexion with knees fully extended and palms resting flat on the floor: 1 point.
Cut-offs (2017 hypermobile Ehlers-Danlos syndrome criteria)	GJH if ≥6/9 in prepubertal children and adolescents, ≥5/9 in pubertal men and women up to age 50, ≥4/9 above age 50.

Articular mobility in an African population

Ann Rheum Dis 1973;32:413–418 (Beighton P, Solomon L, Soskolne CL)

Edition: Beighton 1973 (9-point score); age-specific cut-offs from the 2017 international EDS classification (hypermobile EDS)
Checked on: 4 November 2026
Checked against: pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/4751776
pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC13440628
pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC12380834
pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/28306229

Summary of the published classification in our own words. Not a substitute for the original publication.

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