Which element refers to the total time the symptoms have been present?

• A. Severity
• B. Duration
• C. Timing
• D. HPI

Answer: (B)

Duration is the total time the symptoms have been present, from when they began until now. In the History of Present Illness, you differentiate onset (when symptoms began) from duration (how long they’ve persisted). This is distinct from severity, which gauges how bad the symptoms are, and from timing, which describes the pattern or frequency. The HPI is the overall narrative of the present illness, while duration specifically captures how long the issue has been ongoing. For example, if symptoms started yesterday and are still present, the duration reflects the length of time since onset.