Skin
Unexplained stretch marks with no weight change
Stretch marks on your back, thighs, or stomach usually get pinned on pregnancy, a growth spurt, or a fast change in weight. When none of those apply and they show up anyway, it's a strange thing to have no explanation for.
We're not doctors, and we want to be upfront here about what kind of evidence this page is built on, because it's thinner than some of the other connections on this site.
Stretch Marks as a Recognized Sign of Hypermobility
Unexplained striae, stretch marks not tied to pregnancy, weight change, or a growth spurt, appears as a minor diagnostic criterion in the 2017 International Classification for hEDS. The criteria list the back, abdomen, thighs, breasts, and groin as typical sites. That's a real and specific detail clinicians are trained to look for during an evaluation.
What we haven't found is a dedicated study that measured how common unexplained striae actually is in hEDS, isolated from other features, with its own sample size. The evidence here is checklist-level: striae are recognized as a sign worth noting during diagnosis, not a finding backed by its own epidemiological study. Those are different claims, and only the first one is supported by what's currently published.
Read more on the hub page
What to mention to a doctor
If unexplained stretch marks show up alongside other things, like joints that feel loose or skin that bruises easily, it's a detail worth putting on the table during an evaluation, not a symptom to chase down on its own. A doctor familiar with connective tissue conditions can judge how much weight it deserves alongside everything else.
Sources referenced on this page