Statins lower physical activity in older men: Study

Muscle pain, fatigue, and weakness are common side effects in patients prescribed statins, according to a new study.

The study suggests that physical activity is important for older adults to remain healthy.

The authors used the Osteoporotic Fractures in Men Study to examine the relationship between self-reported physical activity and statin use with seven years of follow-up. The average age of the men in the study was nearly 73 years.

Of the 3,039 men included in the longitudinal analysis, 727 (24 percent) were statin users at baseline and 1,467 (48 percent) never used a statin during the follow-up period. About one-quarter of the men (n=845) first reported using a statin during the follow-up.

Scores on a self-reported physical activity questionnaire declined by an average of 2.5 points per year for nonusers and 2.8 points per year for prevalent users, a difference that was not statistically significant.

For new users, annual scores declined at a faster rate than nonusers. A total of 3,071 men (1,542 of them statin users) had accelerometry data (a measure of movement).

Statin users expended less metabolic equivalents (METS); engaged in less moderate physical activity with 5.4 fewer minutes per day; less vigorous activity with 0.6 fewer minutes per day and had more sedentary behavior with 7.6 more minutes per day.