Muscle pain after intense exercise and tea-colored urine: Caution against rhabdomyolysis and severe renal failure
12 October 2024
Rhabdomyolysis is a disease caused by muscle necrosis, and its causes usually include prolonged pressure injuries, drug reactions, and overly intense exercise.
According to Consultant Kidney Transplantation and Nephrology, Dr Ng Eng Khim, the most common of drug reactions are painkillers, especially non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs) that are damaging the kidneys, which increase the risk of rhabdomyolysis.
"Another type of drugs are psychiatric drugs, which may also cause muscle necrosis in patients, and can lead to rhabdomyolysis.
"One of the side effects of cholesterol-lowering medications is elevated levels of Creatine Kinase (CK), however, it may not directly cause rhabdomyolysis," he says.
He added, if a patient taking cholesterol-lowering medication develops muscle pain accompanied by dark-colored urine, they should consult their doctor about changing the medication.
He explained, the difficult part about rhabdomyolysis is symptoms are usually delayed for 2 to 3 days before they become apparent.
"Patients may notice severe muscle pain with tea-colored urine next day morning after training or exercise, which indicates that the muscle has been severely damaged," he says.
Most people think of athletes is a high-risk group, but it's actually the opposite.
Dr Ng says, because athletes train for long periods under the guidance of professional trainers, hence, the risk of muscle injury is relatively low.
"As long as the kidneys are healthy, properly hydrated and rested after exercise, rhabdomyolysis can heal by itself. Therefore, hydration is a priority after exercise.
"We all know that exercise is necessary, but we should not choose an exercise program that is beyond our ability, especially high-intensity interval training.
"Performing this type of training without adequate knowledge may not only trigger rhabdomyolysis, but also joint injuries or strains. Thus, exercise should be gradual and performed after adequate warm-up.” he emphasized.
Source: Sin Chew Daily
