I took Duavee for thirteen days beginning on May 23. On June 4th (a Sunday) my forehead was hurting slightly so I held the cup of warm green tea I was drinking on my forehead. Later that day I was using a magnifying mirror to pluck my eyebrows and saw a mark on my right eye that looked like a “water pocket”. Then later in the evening just before midnight while washing my hands I noticed my left arm was a little sore and looked deformed on the inside next to the bend of my arm. It was a knot about the size of a small egg.
This really freaked me out so I retrieved the insert which mentions swelling of the arms or legs and called BCBS’s ask a nurse because it was late Sunday night. She sent me to the emergency room.
I went to the emergency room where the doctor on call prescribed an ultrasound to make sure the knot was not a blood clot. She informed me to continue Duavee until the doctor who had prescribed it told me to discontinue the drug. I thought, "Whatever…I've taken my last Duavee!"
So, here it is October 9 and I still have lumps on my arm, knee, and ankle. Although, they have reduced in size somewhat. After several doctor visits none of them, nor Pfizer can tell me what the lumps are, if they are harmful, or if they will go away. The ones on my arm and knee are sore sometimes.
Has anyone else had this side-effect after taking Duavee?
Are the lumps at the joints? Could they be ganglions? You need an ultrasound scan to confirm this.
The lump by my elbow and one by my knee are close to joints. But the other is by my ankle. And the two which went away were on my forehead right above my eyebrows. The five lumps plus the water pocket on my eye all occurring at the same time, then the two lumps on my forehead and water pocket on my eye going away after I stopped the drug has me convinced it is a side effect of the drug. There was an ultrasound done on the lump by my elbow (the photo I posted) which the doctors say showed nothing abnormal.
If they did an ultrasound - what is inside the bumps?
They did not say. I will ask one of the doctors who received the ultrasound results. I've been so mad about all this I haven't been back because I don't even know which doctor to go to and don't feel any of them even care!
My neighbor is head surgeon at a local hospital and my friend who is a chiropractor both think it is lipoma. But why would the lumps have gotten smaller since I stopped the drug? The whole thing is just weird.
Here is an update: The last doctor I saw to says the lumps are an allergic reaction to the Duavee drug. They are still on my arm, leg, and ankle seven months after stopping the drug (which I only took 13 pills.)
hello, I have the same lump location in my left arm. any updates please? thank you