• Question: How to double jointed joints work?

    Asked by anon-346855 on 24 Jan 2023.
    • Photo: Sue Black

      Sue Black answered on 24 Jan 2023:

      The joint is not really double, it just has the ability to have greater movement. This usually results from a laxity of the structures surrounding the joint including the joint capsule, ligaments etc.

    • Photo: David Bryson

      David Bryson answered on 24 Jan 2023:

      Usually in people who are what is termed double jointed they have tendons and ligaments that don’t work as they should for example people with Ehlers-Danlos Syndrome. Normal tendons and ligaments restrict how far our joints can move it is only with injuries and some genetic conditions affecting collagen that lead to joint abnormalities.

    • Photo: Katy Bruce

      Katy Bruce answered on 1 Feb 2023:

      People who are “double-jointed” have hypermobility syndrome. “Hyper” means too much and “mobility” means movement. As Sue and David have already said, this is usually due to having weak ligaments, which are what holds bones together. This is usually due to these people having a different type of collagen that makes their ligaments weaker. Are you double-jointed?

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