A meta-analysis of 123,940 patients found most muscle pain or weakness is not related to statin therapy, according to a study published Aug. 29 in The Lancet.
International researchers conducted a meta-analysis of 19 published studies of statin therapy to determine whether it caused muscle pain or weakness. The analysis included data on more than 123,000 patients who were followed for an average of 4.3 years.
Four study findings:
1. During the first year of statin therapy, only one in 15 patient reports of muscle pain or weakness were due to the statin.
2. After the first year, there was no significant excess in first reports of muscle pain or weakness.
3. About 27 percent of patients taking statins reported muscle pain or weakness, compared to 26.6 percent of patients in the control group.
4. Overall, more than 90 percent of reports of pain were not due to the statin.
"Our findings suggest that there is a need to review recommended strategies for managing such symptoms, and to revise the information in the drug label for statins," the researchers concluded. "In particular, for patients who report mild muscle symptoms when taking a statin, our findings suggest that it is most likely that the symptoms are not due to the statin, and statin therapy should continue until other potential causes have been explored."