Bell Curve

Sat, 06 Sep 2025 00:00:00 +0000

My job is to reassure people that their symptoms are not too far outside the norm, or the “bell curve.” Most patients don’t understand what the bell curve means, but when their illness or injury doesn’t progress as expected, I reassure them that their condition is within one to two standard deviations from the mean.

For example, an 80-year-old woman had been dealing with upper respiratory infection (URI) symptoms for over ten days. She visited the clinic and was started on antibiotics for a possible sinus infection and prednisone for wheezing (i.e., reactive airway disease). The prednisone improved her symptoms, but she reported that her previously prescribed albuterol didn’t seem to help. This piece of history is sometimes revealing because, although the patient may not always remember, someone prescribed that medication in the past, suggesting she likely had similar symptoms before. As a provider, it’s reassuring to know the patient has experienced this condition previously.

Cough on Paul Nystrom

Bell Curve