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. 2009 Feb 19:6:6.
doi: 10.1186/1550-2783-6-6.

The effects of creatine ethyl ester supplementation combined with heavy resistance training on body composition, muscle performance, and serum and muscle creatine levels

Mike Spillane  1 , Ryan Schoch, Matt Cooke, Travis Harvey, Mike Greenwood, Richard Kreider, Darryn S Willoughby
Affiliations

The effects of creatine ethyl ester supplementation combined with heavy resistance training on body composition, muscle performance, and serum and muscle creatine levels

Mike Spillane et al. J Int Soc Sports Nutr. .

Abstract

Numerous creatine formulations have been developed primarily to maximize creatine absorption. Creatine ethyl ester is alleged to increase creatine bio-availability. This study examined how a seven-week supplementation regimen combined with resistance training affected body composition, muscle mass, muscle strength and power, serum and muscle creatine levels, and serum creatinine levels in 30 non-resistance-trained males. In a double-blind manner, participants were randomly assigned to a maltodextrose placebo (PLA), creatine monohydrate (CRT), or creatine ethyl ester (CEE) group. The supplements were orally ingested at a dose of 0.30 g/kg fat-free body mass (approximately 20 g/day) for five days followed by ingestion at 0.075 g/kg fat free mass (approximately 5 g/day) for 42 days. Results showed significantly higher serum creatine concentrations in PLA (p = 0.007) and CRT (p = 0.005) compared to CEE. Serum creatinine was greater in CEE compared to the PLA (p = 0.001) and CRT (p = 0.001) and increased at days 6, 27, and 48. Total muscle creatine content was significantly higher in CRT (p = 0.026) and CEE (p = 0.041) compared to PLA, with no differences between CRT and CEE. Significant changes over time were observed for body composition, body water, muscle strength and power variables, but no significant differences were observed between groups. In conclusion, when compared to creatine monohydrate, creatine ethyl ester was not as effective at increasing serum and muscle creatine levels or in improving body composition, muscle mass, strength, and power. Therefore, the improvements in these variables can most likely be attributed to the training protocol itself, rather than the supplementation regimen.

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Figures

Figure 1
Figure 1
Changes in serum creatine concentrations with data expressed as mean (± SD). † indicates significantly higher serum creatine concentrations in CRT when compared to PLA (p = 0.007) and CEE (p = 0.005). * indicates significant differences for CRT occurred at days 6 (p = 0.028), 27 (p = 0.014), and 48 (p = 0.032).
Figure 2
Figure 2
Changes in muscle total creatine with data expressed as mean (± SD). † indicates a significant difference among groups where the PLA group was significantly less than the CRT (p = 0.026) and CEE (p = 0.041) groups. * indicates significant differences over the course of the four testing sessions where CRT increased at day 6 (p = 0.041) and 27 (p= 0.036), and CEE only increased at day 27 (p = 0.043).
Figure 3
Figure 3
Changes in serum creatinine with data expressed as mean (± SD). † indicates that CEE was greater than PLA (p = 0.001) and CRT (p = 0.001). * indicates significant elevations in CEE at days 6 (p = 0.007), 27 (p = 0.005), and 48 (p = 0.005).
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