Statin-induced myopathy – a challenge for patients and physicians

Statins are the most frequently used drugs for lowering the low density lipoprotein (LDL)-cholesterol and are proven to decrease the cardiovascular-driven mortality. The statin-induced myopathy represents a side effect of the statin therapy and includes heterogenous muscular symptoms, associated with an increase in the creatine kinase (CK) levels, according to clinical trials, at an incidence of 1.5-5%. The statin-induced myopathy is challenging for clinicians, in order to maintain the specific therapeutic approach for each case, as well as for patients at a high risk of cardiovascular diseases, who acknowledges the long-term benefits of the treatment. The aim of this review article is to showcase the types of statin-induced myopathy, the patient cohorts susceptible of developing this side effect and the treatment strategies for hypercholesterolemia/ dyslipidemia.