Joint hypermobility in African non-pregnant nulliparous women

Objective: To investigate the prevalence of joint hypermobility in non-pregnant nulliparous women and the influences of age and Quetelet-index in a rural, female population in Tanzania. Study design: A cross-sectional study. Joint mobility was measured according to the scoring systems of Beighton and Biro. Results: According to the Beighton criteria with a score of 0 to 9 points, 50.5% of 705 non-pregnant nulliparous women scored 3, while 30.8% scored greater than or equal to 4 and 18.6% greater than or equal to 5. There were no correlations between hypermobility and age or Quetelet-index. The prevalence of hypermobility at the dominant body side was significantly lower (19.2%) than at the non-dominant side (23.4%) (p<0.001). Conclusion: This study confirms that there are ethnic differences in the prevalence of hypermobility. The prevalence of hypermobility in Tanzanian non-pregnant nulliparous women is about 1.5-times higher as compared to Dutch non-pregnant nulliparous women. Prevalence of hypermobility was higher at the non-dominant body side. The most predictive test for the diagnosis of hypermobility was the hyperextension of the elbows >10 degrees. (C) 1999 Elsevier Science Ireland Ltd. All rights reserved.