empiric therapy

Definition

Educated guessing about which antibiotic to use before lab results come back, based on what usually causes that kind of infection. Medicine's version of 'spray and pray,' but with more science and less recklessness.

Example Usage

We started empiric therapy with broad-spectrum antibiotics because waiting three days for culture results seemed suboptimal for someone actively dying.

Origin

From Greek 'empeirikos' meaning 'experienced,' used medically since ancient times

Fun Fact

Empiric therapy is a major driver of antibiotic resistance because we often use sledgehammers when we need scalpels, but sometimes the patient can't wait for precision.

Source: Infectious disease and pharmacology terminology

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