Synonyms

   Creatine Phosphokinase

Clinical Significance

   It is useful for diagnosing and monitoring myopathies or other trauma, toxin, or drug-induced muscle injury.

Specimen

   Serum

Stability

   Refrigerated (preferred) : 7 days

   Frozen : 28 days

   Ambient : 48 hours

Reference Range

   24 – 170 U/L

Interpretation

   A high CK concentration, or a result that goes up from the first to a second or later samples, generally indicates that there has been some recent muscle damage. Serial test results that peak and then begin to drop indicate that new muscle damage has diminished, while increasing and persistent elevations suggest continuing damage.

Limitation

   Exercise, muscle trauma (contact sports, traffic accidents, intramuscular injections, surgery, convulsions, wasp or bee stings, and burns), and drugs such as cholesterol-lowering statins can damage muscle and increase serum creatine kinase (CK) concentrations.