Exercise-induced Muscle Damage in Statin Users

Rationale: Combining statin treatment and physical activity is very effective for the prevention of cardiovascular diseases. Statins are well-tolerated by most patients, but may cause statin-associated muscle symptoms (SAMS) and elevated markers of skeletal muscle damage in some patients. Several studies have shown that statins augment increases in serum creatine kinase after eccentric or vigorous exercise. If statins also increase muscle damage markers after exercises of moderate intensity is unclear. Symptomatic statin users may be more susceptible to exercise-induced skeletal muscle injury, however, previous studies did not differentiate between symptomatic and asymptomatic statin users. Objective: To compare the impact of moderate-intensity exercise on muscle damage markers between symptomatic and asymptomatic statin users, and non-statin using controls. A secondary objective is to examine the association between leukocytes coenzyme Q10 levels and exercise-induced muscle damage and muscle complaints.