This study was published in Metabolism 1997 Oct;46(10):1206-10
Study title and authors:
Lovastatin increases exercise-induced skeletal muscle injury.
Thompson PD, Zmuda JM, Domalik LJ, Zimet RJ, Staggers J, Guyton JR.
Division of Cardiology, University of Pittsburgh, PA, USA.
This study can be accessed at: http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/9322808
This study investigated the association between statins, exercise and creatine kinase levels (high levels of creatine kinase are a marker for muscle damage) using a double-blind, placebo-controlled design. The study include 59 healthy men aged 18 to 65 years who were assigned to receive lovastatin (40 mg per day) or placebo for 5 weeks. The men completed 45 minutes of treadmill walking after 4 weeks of treatment.
The study found that the creatine kinase levels of the men who received lovastatin were 62% and 77% higher 24 and 48 hours after the treadmill exercise compared to the men who received placebo.
The researchers concluded that statins exacerbate exercise-induced skeletal muscle injury.
