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Cited by 31Coenzyme Q10 studies and effectsMitochondrial Function and PathologyLipoproteins and Cardiovascular Health

Coenzyme Q10 Supplementation in Statin Treated Patients: A Double-Blinded Randomized Placebo-Controlled Trial

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Dohlmann, Tine L., Kuhlman, Anja B., Morville, Thomas, Dahl, Maria, Asping, Magnus, Orlando, Patrick, Silvestri, Sonia, Tiano, Luca +3 more·2022·Antioxidants
DOI 10.3390/antiox11091698PMC PMC9495827
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Abstract

Myalgia and new-onset of type 2 diabetes have been associated with statin treatment, which both could be linked to reduced coenzyme Q10 (CoQ10) in skeletal muscle and impaired mitochondrial function. Supplementation with CoQ10 focusing on levels of CoQ10 in skeletal muscle and mitochondrial function has not been investigated in patients treated with statins. To investigate whether concomitant administration of CoQ10 with statins increases the muscle CoQ10 levels and improves the mitochondrial function, and if changes in muscle CoQ10 levels correlate with changes in the intensity of myalgia. 37 men and women in simvastatin therapy with and without myalgia were randomized to receive 400 mg CoQ10 daily or matched placebo tablets for eight weeks. Muscle CoQ10 levels, mitochondrial respiratory capacity, mitochondrial content (using citrate synthase activity as a biomarker), and production of reactive oxygen species were measured before and after CoQ10 supplementation, and intensity of myalgia was determined using the 10 cm visual analogue scale. Muscle CoQ10 content and mitochondrial function were unaltered by CoQ10 supplementation. Individual changes in muscle CoQ10 levels were not correlated with changes in intensity of myalgia. CoQ10 supplementation had no effect on muscle CoQ10 levels or mitochondrial function and did not affect symptoms of myalgia.

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  • Six out of seven studies administered CoQ10 in the intervention group and placebo in the control group; one trial compared CoQ10 plus n-3 fatty acids to n-3 fatty acids only.

    “Six out of seven studies administer CoQ10 supplements in the intervention group and a placebo supplement in the control group.(34,39–43) One trial compares the supplementation of CoQ10 in combination with n-3-fatty acids (n-3 FA) in the intervention group to a control group taking n-3 FA only.(33)”

    From Effects of coenzyme Q10 supplementation on myopathy in statin-treated patients: a systematic review and meta-analysis (2025) · cites this paper as [39]

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  • Four studies stated SAMS as inclusion criterion, while three studies included patients with and without SAMS besides other side effects.

    “Four studies stated SAMS as inclusion criterion,(34,41–43) while three studies included patients with and without SAMS besides other side effects.(33,39,40)”

    From Effects of coenzyme Q10 supplementation on myopathy in statin-treated patients: a systematic review and meta-analysis (2025) · cites this paper as [39]

    The Results (section 4.1) report participants with and without myalgia at inclusion, supporting this paper’s inclusion among studies with mixed muscle-symptom status. The Recruitment section (2.1) does not identify other side effects as an inclusion criterion, and section 4.1 says no intervention-related side effects were reported. The claim’s reference to other side effects is therefore not supported for this study. (LLM, conf=0.84)

    Experimental — accuracy not yet measured

  • Four out of seven included studies show a significant reduction of muscle pain intensity after CoQ10 supplementation compared to control, while three studies do not show a significant change.

    “Four out of seven studies show a significant reduction of muscle pain intensity after CoQ10 supplementation compared to the control group,(33,39,40,42) while three studies do not show a significant change of muscle pain intensity(34,41,43) (Table 2).”

    From Effects of coenzyme Q10 supplementation on myopathy in statin-treated patients: a systematic review and meta-analysis (2025) · cites this paper as [39]

  • Risk of bias assessment shows an overall low risk of bias in four included studies and moderate to high risk in three studies.

    “The risk of bias assessment shows an overall low risk of bias in four of the included studies with no considerable bias in all five underlying domains,(34,39,40,43) whereas the remaining three studies show an overall moderate to high risk of bias (Figure 2).(33,41,42)”

    From Effects of coenzyme Q10 supplementation on myopathy in statin-treated patients: a systematic review and meta-analysis (2025) · cites this paper as [39]

  • Dohlmann et al. reported myalgia at baseline in 11 of 18 intervention participants and 8 of 17 control participants.

    “Among studies without SAMS as inclusion criterion, prevalences of myopathic symptoms were reported by Dohlmann et al.(39) as follows: in the intervention group 11 out of 18 participants reported myalgia at baseline and in the control group 8 out of 17 participants.(39)”

    From Effects of coenzyme Q10 supplementation on myopathy in statin-treated patients: a systematic review and meta-analysis (2025) · cites this paper as [39]

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Authors
Dohlmann, T. L., Kuhlman, A. B., Morville, T., Dahl, M., Asping, M., Orlando, P., Silvestri, S., Tiano, L., Helge, J. W., Dela, F., & Larsen, S.
Affiliations
  • University of Copenhagen (DK)
  • Marche Polytechnic University (IT)
Corresponding author
Larsen, Steen
ORCID
Venue
Antioxidants
Publisher
MDPI AG
Published
2022-08-29
Volume
11
Issue
9
Pages
1698
ISSN
2076-3921 (ISSN-L)
DOI
10.3390/antiox11091698
PMC
PMC9495827
OpenAlex
W4293527105
Cited by
31
References
12
Citations by year
2026: 5 · 2025: 11 · 2024: 10 · 2023: 4 · 2022: 1
FWCI
2.12
Type
journal article
Language
en
Open access
Licence
Locations
  • Antioxidants (publishedVersion, cc-by)
  • PubMed Central (publishedVersion, cc-by)
  • PubMed (publishedVersion)
  • Research at the University of Copenhagen (University of Copenhagen) (publishedVersion, cc-by)
  • DOAJ (DOAJ: Directory of Open Access Journals) (submittedVersion, cc-by-sa)
  • Università Politecnica delle Marche (Università Politecnica delle Marche) (submittedVersion)
Funders
  • University of Copenhagen 2016 Center of Excellence grant
  • PharmaNord
Topics
  • Life Sciences › Biochemistry, Genetics and Molecular Biology › Molecular Biology › Coenzyme Q10 studies and effects
  • Life Sciences › Biochemistry, Genetics and Molecular Biology › Molecular Biology › Mitochondrial Function and Pathology
  • Health Sciences › Medicine › Surgery › Lipoproteins and Cardiovascular Health
Keywords
coenzyme Q10 supplementation, statins, simvastatin, statin-induced myalgia, skeletal muscle, mitochondrial function, mitochondrial respiratory capacity, citrate synthase, reactive oxygen species, type 2 diabetes, myalgia

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