VVitals Vault
Sign in
Enzymes

Creatine kinase

An enzyme released from muscle whenever muscle fibres are damaged, which includes the ordinary damage of training.

Unit U/LTypical adult range 46–171 U/L
What it is

An enzyme released from muscle whenever muscle fibres are damaged, which includes the ordinary damage of training.

Why it matters

It is the most exercise-sensitive value in a routine panel, and it is the number that explains an unexplained AST.

Reading the number

Hard or unaccustomed exercise raises it many times over for several days, so a high value after a heavy week is expected and means nothing. Test after a genuinely quiet week if you want a baseline.

What moves it
recent intense or unaccustomed exercisemuscle injurystatinsthyroid function
Read alongside
ASTALTCreatinine
When to raise it

Worth discussing a high value that persists after a week without training, especially with muscle aches on a statin.

Tracking only, not a diagnosis. The range above is a typical adult reference range — the range printed by the lab that ran your test is the one that applies to you. Discuss anything that concerns you with your doctor.

Also known as

On a report in another language.

A lab report names this analyte in its own language. Vitals Vault recognises each of these and files them all under Creatine kinase.

Creatinaquinase Total (CK Total)Creatinaquinase TotalCK TotalCKCPKKreatinkinase

Track your creatine kinase over time.

Creatine kinase is one of 165 analytes Vitals Vault charts over time. Import a lab report in any language and this number lands on a timeline only you can read.

Continue with Google
Tracking only. This app is not medical advice. Always discuss results and future analysis with your doctor.

Catalog entry last updated 2026-08-28. Browse all 165 metrics.