Directed therapy refers to the treatment of

infections An infection is the invasion of tissue (biology), tissues by pathogens, their multiplication, and the reaction of host (biology), host tissues to the infectious agent and the toxins they produce. An infectious disease, also known as a transmiss ...

based on specific knowledge of what the causal agent is able to be treated with. It is the opposite to

empiric therapy Empiric therapy or empirical therapy is medical treatment or therapy based on experience and, more specifically, therapy begun on the basis of a clinical "educated guess" in the absence of complete or perfect information. Thus it is applied before ...

, which refers to the treatment of infections based on the clinical suspicion about what the agent should be able to be treated with, based on experience or

guidelines A guideline is a statement by which to determine a course of action. A guideline aims to streamline particular processes according to a set routine or sound practice. Guidelines may be issued by and used by any organization (governmental or pri ...

. Information that directs therapy may

medical tests A medical test is a medical procedure performed to detect, diagnose, or monitor diseases, disease processes, susceptibility, or to determine a course of treatment. Medical tests such as, physical and visual exams, diagnostic imaging, genetic te ...

that isolate the cause of an infection, such as

microbiological culture A microbiological culture, or microbial culture, is a method of multiplying microbial organisms by letting them reproduce in predetermined culture medium under controlled laboratory conditions. Microbial cultures are foundational and basic diagn ...

, or

polymerase chain reaction The polymerase chain reaction (PCR) is a method widely used to rapidly make millions to billions of copies (complete or partial) of a specific DNA sample, allowing scientists to take a very small sample of DNA and amplify it (or a part of it) t ...

testing, as well as testing for

antimicrobial sensitivities Antibiotic sensitivity testing or antibiotic susceptibility testing is the measurement of the susceptibility of bacteria to antibiotics. It is used because bacteria may have resistance to some antibiotics. Sensitivity testing results can allow ...

. Often, directed therapy occurs after initial empiric therapy. Empiric therapy is often commenced first, particularly important when antimicrobial sensitivities are not known, or when a severe infection such as one causing

sepsis Sepsis, formerly known as septicemia (septicaemia in British English) or blood poisoning, is a life-threatening condition that arises when the body's response to infection causes injury to its own tissues and organs. This initial stage is follo ...

has been identified. In this circumstance, the decision may be made for

first. A change to directed therapy may be associated with a change in antimicrobials, a change in the duration of treatment, or the cessation of unnecessary antimicrobials. Directed therapy is considered important because it ensures a person is completely treated for an infection, and because it can help lower the rate of antimicrobial resistance.

References

{{Antibiotics social and layman issues Medicine articles needing expert attention Medical treatments