Creatine Kinase (CK) is an enzyme found in the muscles and heart. The CK lab test measures the levels of this enzyme in the blood. Read More
Creatine kinase (CK), formerly known as creatine phosphokinase, is an intracellular enzyme present in greatest amounts in skeletal muscle, myocardium, and brain; smaller amounts occur in other visceral tissues.
Disruption of cell membranes due to hypoxia or other injury releases CK from the cellular cytosol into the systemic circulation. On this basis, elevated serum levels of CK have been used as a sensitive . The poor specificity reflects the ubiquity of CK in many tissues other than the myocardium
it is used to:
Diagnose Muscle : Elevated CK levels indicate muscle damage or injury, which can occur due to conditions like myocardial infarction (heart attack), muscular dystrophy, trauma, or vigorous exercise.
Monitor Certain Diseases: CK levels are monitored in conditions affecting muscles, such as muscular dystrophy, inflammatory myopathies (like polymyositis and dermatomyositis), and statin-induced myopathy (muscle damage due to cholesterol-lowering medications).
Assess Heart Health: CK level is used with another enzymes to diagnose and monitor heart attacks.
Types of Creatine Kinase:
CK-MM: Found predominantly in skeletal muscles.
CK-MB: Found in the heart muscle.
CK-BB: Found in the brain and smooth muscle.
Muscle weakness
Muscle stiffness
Muscle twitching
Numbness
Muscle spasms
Muscle pain
Cramping
Joint deformity
fatigue
Unability to do excersises
CK’s job is to add a phosphate group, a group of natural chemicals, to creatine, a substance in your muscle cells that helps your muscles produce energy. When CK adds phosphates to creatine, it turns the creatine into the high-energy molecule, phosphocreatine, which your body uses to generate energy. CK gets into your bloodstream when your muscles, heart or brain experience acute damage or chronic degeneration. When your muscles are damaged, the muscle cells break open, and their contents, including creatine kinase, leak into your bloodstream.
Exercise and training are the main cause of increased creatine kinase levels High CK levels are also found in obese and overweight people. Muscle injuries, physical trauma, and burns Genetic muscle disorder, such as muscular dystrophy Infections by viruses, bacteria, fungi, or parasites, causing muscle wasting Fever, accompanied by shivering Hormonal disorders, such as hypothyroidism, Addison’s disease, acromegaly Diabetes; when it causes muscle dysfunction Some cases of autoimmune diseases when there is muscle involvement Heart attacks
CK-MB Test: Specifically measures CK-MB, a form of CK found mainly in the heart muscle. Elevated CK-MB levels can indicate myocardial infarction (heart attack). Troponin I (TnI): Measures the levels of troponin I in the blood. Troponin I is also specific to cardiac muscle and is released into the bloodstream when there is damage to the heart muscle. Kidey function test : elevated levels of CK in conditions like myoglobinuria can contribute to kidney problems
It takes several hours to get the result