• Posted June 26, 2026

Statins Rarely Cause Severe Muscle Problems, Researchers Say

Concerns about statins causing severe muscle problems are overblown, a new study says.

The cholesterol-lowering drugs can be expected to rarely cause any serious muscle problems, researchers reported June 25 in The Lancet Digital Health.

More than 98% of people eligible for statins are at low risk of serious muscle problems, according to a new calculator developed by researchers at the University of Oxford in the U.K.

"Serious muscle disorders are one of the most widely discussed concerns about statins, but our findings suggest that the risk is very low for the vast majority of people who may benefit from treatment,” lead author Ting Cai, a research fellow at the university, said in a news release.

Muscle pain is the most common side effect of statins, and online comment has fired up worries that the medications might hobble active middle-aged adults and seniors.

To see whether those concerns are justified, researchers used electronic health record data for nearly 1.8 million people between 1998 and 2018 to create a risk calculator for statins and severe muscle disorders that result in hospitalization or death.

The model uses 22 routinely recorded factors — including age, sex, previous muscle problems, vitamin D deficiency and other prescriptions —to assess risk of muscle disorders from statin use.

The team then tested that calculator on another 3.9 million people, to validate its accuracy.

Results showed that statins very rarely lead to muscle problems that result hospitalization.

“Understanding a person's risk can help put those concerns into perspective, support more informed treatment decisions and provide reassurance,” Cai said. “For the small number of people at higher risk, it gives clinicians a clearer basis for discussing monitoring, checks or alternative treatment options.”

While the study focused on serious muscle disorders, researchers noted that milder symptoms like muscle aches and pains usually aren’t caused by statins.

The study also found that more than 60% of people eligible for statins weren’t taking them, despite their high risk for heart attack and stroke.

“Clinical decisions are often based on estimates of potential benefit, but understanding potential harms is equally important,” senior researcher Constantinos Koshiaris, an assistant professor of medical statistics at the University of Nicosia Medical School in Cyprus, said in a news release.

“This model provides a way to quantify that risk at an individual level, helping support more balanced discussion about treatment options,” Koshiaris said.

More information

Cleveland Clinic has more on statins and muscle pain.

SOURCE: University of Oxford, news release, June 25, 2026