According to a new study conducted by a cardiologist in California, patients taking statin medications may suffer muscle damage even though the body's level of creatine kinase (CK), an enzyme of vertebrate skeletal and myocardial muscle, does not suggest myopathy. In the October 1 issue of the Annals of Internal Medicine, Dr. Paul S. Phillips, a physician with Scripps Mercy Hospital in San Diego, describes how several of his patients suffered muscle aches and fatigue while using statins even though they showed normal CK levels.

According to the American Heart Association, patients should be taken off statins if their CK levels are 10 times normal. Phillips insists that more testing should be conducted on the subject, but early indications are that CK testing may not detect muscle damage in patients using statin drugs.