Validation of the Chinese version of the Five-Part questionnaire for screening joint hypermobility in young adults

Background Joint hypermobility is a common condition with variable prevalence across populations. The Five-Part Questionnaire (5PQ) is a widely used self-report screening tool, but it has not been validated in Chinese. Methods This prospective study recruited university students in Chengdu, China. Participants completed the Chinese version of the 5PQ (5PQ-CN) and underwent Beighton score (BS) assessment, using ≥ 5 as the cut-off for generalised joint hypermobility (GJH). Validity was assessed by sensitivity, specificity, predictive values, and area under the receiver operating characteristic curve ( AUC ). Test–retest reliability was evaluated using Cohen’s kappa and intraclass correlation coefficients ( ICC ). Results A total of 1,910 participants were recruited, of whom 615 were included in the final validity analysis and 325 in the reliability subgroup. The prevalence of GJH was 50.1% by BS and 56.4% by 5PQ-CN ( p  < .001). The 5PQ-CN demonstrated 78.6% sensitivity, 65.8% specificity, 72.2% accuracy, and an AUC of .722. Test–retest reliability showed Cohen’s kappa = .703 and ICC  = .707, indicating substantial and moderate reliability, respectively. Conclusions The 5PQ-CN is a valid and reliable tool for screening GJH in young adults and may complement clinician-based assessments in both research and large-scale epidemiological settings.