Multimodal AI-based phenotyping for hypermobile Ehlers-Danlos syndrome: gastroenterological, mucocutaneous, neuro-ORL and emergency manifestations
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.70577/m9k9pz38Keywords:
hypermobile Ehlers-Danlos syndrome, multimodal phenotyping, artificial intelligence, machine learning, gastrointestinal manifestations, dysautonomia, facial phenotyping, clusteringAbstract
Introduction: Hypermobile Ehlers-Danlos syndrome (hEDS) is a heterogeneous connective tissue disorder characterized by joint hypermobility, instability, chronic pain, and multisystem manifestations, lacking a definitive genetic biomarker, which complicates early diagnosis and phenotypic stratification (Hakim, 2024; Malfait et al., 2017). Objective: To synthesize the available evidence on the application of multimodal AI-based phenotyping to identify phenotypic subgroups of hEDS with gastroenterological, mucocutaneous, neuro-ORL and emergency manifestations. Methodology: Systematic review following PRISMA 2020 guidelines (Page et al., 2021). A systematic search was conducted in PubMed, LILACS, SciELO and Cochrane for studies published between 2015 and 2025 on hEDS phenotyping using AI, clustering techniques and multimodal analysis. Observational and technological development studies were included. Quality was assessed using the adapted Newcastle-Ottawa scale (Wells et al., 2000). Results: Seven relevant studies applying computational and AI models for hEDS phenotyping were identified. Machine learning models, including logistic regression and decision trees, identified stable phenotypic subgroups (7 clusters) with variable organ system involvement, including musculoskeletal, gastrointestinal and neurological domains (Pearson et al., 2025). AI-based facial phenotyping demonstrated ability to distinguish hEDS from other subtypes (AUC ≥ 0.97) (Murdock et al., 2025). Studies reported high prevalence of gastrointestinal manifestations (up to 49% SIBO), dysautonomia, neuropathy, and emergency complications (Cureus, 2025; Zhao, 2026). Conclusion: Multimodal AI-based phenotyping represents a promising tool for early identification and phenotypic stratification of hEDS. Integration of clinical, molecular, and wearable device data enables characterization of subgroups with specific manifestations and guides multidisciplinary management (Pearson et al., 2025; Zhao, 2026).
Downloads
References
Cureus. (2025). Multisystemic manifestations of hypermobile Ehlers-Danlos syndrome in a Latin American patient: A case report. Cureus, 17(9), e412884.
Hakim, A. (2024). Hypermobile Ehlers-Danlos syndrome. In M. P. Adam, G. M. Mirzaa, R. A. Pagon, et al. (Eds.), GeneReviews®. University of Washington. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/books/NBK1279/
Higgins, J. P. T., Thomas, J., Chandler, J., Cumpston, M., Li, T., Page, M. J., & Welch, V. A. (Eds.). (2019). Cochrane Handbook for Systematic Reviews of Interventions (Version 6.0). Cochrane. https://training.cochrane.org/handbook DOI: https://doi.org/10.1002/9781119536604
Malfait, F., Francomano, C., Byers, P., Belmont, J., Berglund, B., Black, J., Bloom, L., Bowen, J. M., Brady, A. F., Burrows, N. P., Castori, M., Cohen, H., Colombi, M., Demirdas, S., De Backer, J., De Paepe, A., Fournel-Gigleux, S., Frank, M., Ghali, N., ... Tinkle, B. (2017). The 2017 international classification of the Ehlers-Danlos syndromes. American Journal of Medical Genetics Part C: Seminars in Medical Genetics, 175(1), 8-26. https://doi.org/10.1002/ajmg.c.31552 DOI: https://doi.org/10.1002/ajmg.c.31552
McGill University. (2025). hEDSOmics Research Program. https://www.mcgill.ca/hypermobile-eds-omics-research/research
Moola, S., Munn, Z., Tufanaru, C., Aromataris, E., Sears, K., Sfetcu, R., Currie, M., Lisy, K., Qureshi, R., Mattis, P., & Mu, P. (2020). Systematic reviews of etiology and risk. In E. Aromataris & Z. Munn (Eds.), JBI Manual for Evidence Synthesis. JBI. https://synthesismanual.jbi.global DOI: https://doi.org/10.46658/JBIRM-17-06
Murdock, D. R., Suresh, A., Calderon Martinez, E., Grimes, J., Butta, A., Bora, K., & Pepin, M. (2025). Early diagnosis of vascular Ehlers-Danlos syndrome through AI-powered facial analysis: Results from the Montalcino Aortic Consortium. Genetics in Medicine Open, 1(1), 103434. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.gimo.2025.103434 DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.gimo.2025.103434
Page, M. J., McKenzie, J. E., Bossuyt, P. M., Boutron, I., Hoffmann, T. C., Mulrow, C. D., Shamseer, L., Tetzlaff, J. M., Akl, E. A., Brennan, S. E., Chou, R., Glanville, J., Grimshaw, J. M., Hróbjartsson, A., Lalu, M. M., Li, T., Loder, E. W., Mayo-Wilson, E., McDonald, S., ... Moher, D. (2021). The PRISMA 2020 statement: An updated guideline for reporting systematic reviews. BMJ, 372, n71. https://doi.org/10.1136/bmj.n71 DOI: https://doi.org/10.1136/bmj.n71
Pearson, M., Laraway, B., & Haendel, M. (2025). Computational phenotyping and clustering of hypermobile Ehlers-Danlos syndrome using EHR data. AMIA Annual Symposium Proceedings. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jbi.2025.104456
Wells, G. A., Shea, B., O'Connell, D., Peterson, J., Welch, V., Losos, M., & Tugwell, P. (2000). The Newcastle-Ottawa Scale (NOS) for assessing the quality of nonrandomised studies in meta-analyses. Ottawa Hospital Research Institute.
Zhao, K. (2026). Novel integrative statistical modeling of wearable and omics data to better understand hypermobile Ehlers-Danlos syndrome. CANSSI Ontario Banting-CANSSI Discovery Award. https://canssiontario.utoronto.ca/2026-banting-canssi-discovery-award-recipient-dr-kaiqiong-zhao/
Downloads
Published
Issue
Section
License
Copyright (c) 2026 Melany Sofia Paredes Astudillo, Erika Alejandra Zúñiga San Lucas, Miguel Santiago Ulquiango Barrera, Cristian David Naranjo Ibarra, Bryan David Alvarado Guaman (Autor/a)

This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 4.0 International License.













