Sex differences in serum CK activity but not in glomerular filtration rate after resistance exercise: is there a sex dependent renal adaptative response?

We investigated differences in sex responses in serum CK activity and renal function measured by glomerular filtration rate (GFR) after an exercise session. Twenty-two healthy and trained volunteers (11 males and 11 females) performed 17 resistance exercises with 3 × 12 repetitions in a circuit training fashion. Subjects provided blood samples prior to exercise session, and at 24, 48, and 72 h following exercise sessions for creatine kinase and creatinine. Twenty-four-hour urine samples were collected before and 72 h after the exercise. Estimate (e) GFR was obtained by using the Chronic Kidney Disease Epidemiology Collaboration equation adjusted for males and females. After the exercise session, males showed greater serum CK activity than females (p < 0.02), serum creatinine increased 31.3 % for males and 29.8 % for females, and urinary creatinine decreased on average 5.4 % for males and 0.6 % for females, with no significant differences (p > 0.05) between sex for serum and urinary creatinine. eGFR decreased significantly for males (~10 %) and females (~8 %), but also without a difference between the sexes (p > 0.05). The correlation between CK and eGFR was significant for males (r = -0.794; p = 0.003), and females (r = -0.8875; p < 0.001). A significant negative correlation between CK activity and the eGFR indice of renal function in both males and females was observed. Additionally, the renal function compromise was similar for both sexes, despite males presenting greater exercise-induced skeletal muscle damage when compared to females.