empirical treatment


empirical treatment

Treatment given without knowledge of the cause or nature of the disorder and based on experience rather than logic. Sometimes urgency dictates empirical treatment, as when a dangerous infection by an unknown organism is treated with a broad-spectrum antibiotic while the results of bacterial culture and other tests are awaited.

Empirical treatment

Medical treatment that is given on the basis of the doctor's observations and experience.Mentioned in: Enterobacterial Infections