How would you manage this patient with statin-induced muscle symptoms?

Last updated 15th Feb 2023

A 72-year-old woman with a background of cardiovascular disease is taking atorvastatin 80mg for secondary CVD prevention.

She presented to her GP with intolerable muscle pain and weakness since starting statin therapy. Blood tests revealed a CK of 820 U/L (>4x ULN).

Her symptoms resolved and CK normalised following discontinuation of atorvastatin. However, upon starting a trial of Rosuvastatin 10mg, her muscle pain and weakness soon returned.

How would you manage this patient further?

This MedShr educational programme has been funded by an arm’s length sponsorship by Novartis Pharmaceuticals UK Limited (“Novartis”). Novartis has had no input in development of the content or involvement in the delivery or execution of the educational programme. Anonymized data may be shared with Novartis.