Joint Hypermobility Links Neurodivergence to Dysautonomia and Pain

This publication is included in the Autistic Autism Scholarship Project. one author of this publication is identified as autistic in the project.

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Csecs, J. L. L., Iodice, V., Rae, C. L., Brooke, A., Simmons, R., Quadt, L., Savage, G., Dowell, N. G., Prowse, F., Themelis, K., Mathias, C. J., Critchley, H. D., & Eccles, J. A. (2022). Joint Hypermobility Links Neurodivergence to Dysautonomia and Pain. Frontiers in Psychiatry, 12, 786916-786916. https://doi.org/10.3389/fpsyt.2021.786916

Publication date: 1 Feb 2022 Added to AutiHub: 25 Sep 2026 Type: Article Article language: English

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Authors

Publication authors
13
Publication authors identified as autistic
1 / 13 (7.7%)

Abstract

Objectives Autism, attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), and tic disorder (Tourette syndrome; TS) are neurodevelopmental conditions that frequently co-occur and impact psychological, social, and emotional processes. Increased likelihood of chronic physical symptoms, including fatigue and pain, are also recognized. The expression of joint hypermobility, reflecting a constitutional variant in connective tissue, predicts susceptibility to psychological symptoms alongside recognized physical symptoms. Here, we tested for increased prevalence of joint hypermobility, autonomic dysfunction, and musculoskeletal symptoms in 109 adults with neurodevelopmental condition diagnoses. Methods Rates of generalized joint hypermobility (GJH, henceforth hypermobility) in adults with a formal diagnosis of neurodevelopmental conditions (henceforth neurodivergent group, n = 109) were compared to those in the general population in UK. Levels of orthostatic intolerance and musculoskeletal symptoms were compared to a separate comparison group (n = 57). Age specific cut-offs for GJH were possible to determine in the neurodivergent and comparison group only. Results The neurodivergent group manifested elevated prevalence of hypermobility (51%) compared to the general population rate of 20% and a comparison population (17.5%). Using a more stringent age specific cut-off, in the neurodivergent group this prevalence was 28.4%, more than double than the comparison group (12.5%). Odds ratio for presence of hypermobility in neurodivergent group, compared to the general population was 4.51 (95% CI 2.17–9.37), with greater odds in females than males. Using age specific cut-off, the odds ratio for GJH in neurodivergent group, compared to the comparison group, was 2.84 (95% CI 1.16–6.94). Neurodivergent participants reported significantly more symptoms of orthostatic intolerance and musculoskeletal skeletal pain than the comparison group. The number of hypermobile joints was found to mediate the relationship between neurodivergence and symptoms of both dysautonomia and pain. Conclusions In neurodivergent adults, there is a strong link between the expression of joint hypermobility, dysautonomia, and pain, more so than in the comparison group. Moreover, joint hypermobility mediates the link between neurodivergence and symptoms of dysautonomia and pain. Increased awareness and understanding of this association may enhance the management of core symptoms and allied difficulties in neurodivergent people, including co-occurring physical symptoms, and guide service delivery in the future.

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Cited bibliography overview

These indicators describe the bibliography cited by this publication. An author name is counted each time it appears in one cited reference, so the same person can be counted more than once. Names not yet linked to an author already present in AutiHub are treated as unknown, not as non-autistic. Last computed: 2 Oct 2026 01:40.

Cited references
63
With a DOI
56
Without a DOI, from raw bibliography text
5
3 / 63 (4.8%) cited references include at least one author identified as autistic.
References with data to complete
3 / 63 (4.8%)
References with detected author names
60 / 63 (95.2%)
Without detected author names
3
Without a structured title
2
Without a stable identifier
5
References with raw author names still to review
1
References with external metadata lookup issues
0
These indicators apply to cited references displayed on this page, after technical duplicates have been merged. A reference without a DOI can still support author statistics when a title and author names are available.
Author names detected in the cited bibliography
327
From DOI or external metadata
327
From validated raw bibliography text
0
Raw names already validated
0
Raw names still to review
1
54 / 327 (16.5%) names are linked to an author already present in AutiHub. 273 / 327 (83.5%) names are not yet linked.
Names linked to a person identified as autistic
4 / 327 (1.2%)
Calculated across all author names detected in the cited bibliography. Among names linked to an author already present in AutiHub: 4 / 54 (7.4%). Distinct people identified as autistic: 2 / 277 (0.7%).
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