Evaluation of Clinical Management of COVID-19 Patients in China in the Year 2020

Abstract

Our research aimed to analyze the application and outcome of several common antiviral drugs and the traditional Chinese medicine formulations for COVID-19 during the early months (January 20, 2020 to December 30, 2020) of the epidemics in China. Patients were clinically classified into mild, common, severe, and critical types based on their clinical symptoms, pulmonary imaging findings, and complications. During the study period, antiviral treatment was administered to 482 patients, with 342 patients receiving a combination of traditional Chinese and Western medicine, accounting for 80.60% and 57.19% of the discharged COVID-19 patients (598 cases), respectively. The main treatment consisted of monotherapy with lopinavir/ ritonavir, arbidol, and chloroquine phosphate, with a need to change the treatment regimen in 29.88% of patients. Three traditional Chinese medicine formulations—Huoxiangzhengqi Liquid, Lianhuaqingwen Jiaonang, and Shufeng Jiedu Jiaonang—were used for COVID-19 treatment and showed good curing effects for patients with mild common clinical classification. Antiviral-related adverse effects were experienced by a total of 142 patients (29.46%). To sum up, antiviral and TCM treatments remain the mainstays of therapy for COVID-19 and show good effects.