The fifth wave of the epidemic has reached the white-hot stage, with more than 330,000 new confirmed cases so far (March 4).
The state has continued to reinforce manpower and supplies to Hong Kong to fight the epidemic, including three proprietary Chinese medicines - "Lianhua Qingwen Capsules", "Jinhua Qinggan Granules" and "Huoxiang Zhengqi". Further play the preventive role of traditional Chinese medicine.
However, as the medical system in Hong Kong is mainly based on modern medicine and Western medicine, Chinese patent medicines are rarely used in major hospitals or private clinics.
However, these three types of drugs are actually "stand-alone drugs" for the anti-epidemic in mainland cities, and they have been written into the official anti-epidemic plan by the state.
The country started donating anti-epidemic Chinese patent medicines to Hong Kong at the end of last month, including "Lianhua Qingwen Capsules", "Jinhua Qinggan Granules" and "Huoxiang Zhengqi".
(China Times)
Relying on Traditional Chinese Medicine to Fight Plague for Thousands of Years
After the country started donating anti-epidemic Chinese medicines to Hong Kong at the end of last month, there were two main reactions in the market. One was rushing to buy it, and the other was doubting the efficacy of the medicine. However, whether it is the former or the latter, I believe that many people have limited understanding of Chinese medicine.
Compared with the ubiquitous western medicines, there are few proprietary Chinese medicines on the market, and the public will inevitably feel unfamiliar; and the reason why proprietary Chinese medicines are not popular is that they must be registered in the Chinese Medicines Section of the Hong Kong Chinese Medicine Council in accordance with the Chinese Medicine Ordinance before they are marketed. Registration requires strict requirements and complicated procedures, so many proprietary Chinese medicines that have been widely used in the mainland may not be available in Hong Kong.
The medicines donated by the state, such as Lianhua Qingwen Capsules, Jinhua Qinggan Granules, and Huoxiangzhengqi, are all available for sale in Hong Kong, but there are not many registered "Hong Kong versions", and there are some other unregistered versions circulating on the black market.
Whether it is unfamiliar or doubtful, a fact that cannot be ignored is that the development of traditional Chinese medicine has a long history.
As Au Haoting, a registered Chinese medicine practitioner at Huixin Chinese Medicine Clinic, pointed out in an interview with Hong Kong 01: "Before Western medicine was introduced into China, we relied on Chinese medicine to fight the plague."
In the "New Coronary Virus Pneumonia Diagnosis and Treatment Plan" published by the General Office of the National Health and Health Commission, there are clearly written symptoms of three Chinese patent medicines: Jinhua Qinggan Granules, Lianhua Qingwen Capsules, and Huoxiang Zhengqi Pills.
(Screenshot of the "Plan")
"Three medicines and three prescriptions" are included in the national treatment plan
The three anti-epidemic Chinese patent medicines donated by the state are "Lianhua Qingwen Capsules", "Jinhua Qinggan Granules" and "Huoxiang Zhengqi", all of which are included in the "Diagnosis and Treatment Plan for Novel Coronavirus Pneumonia" published by the General Office of the National Health Commission. ” (fourth to eighth editions),
applicable to the new crown prevention and initial symptoms stage
.
At the same time, Jinhua Qinggan Granules and Lianhua Qingwen Capsules have been included in the "Three Medicines and Three Prescriptions" by the state to fight against the new crown: "Three Medicines" include "Xuebijing Injection" in addition to the above two proprietary Chinese medicines; and "Three Medicines" Sanfang” refers to Qingfei Paidu Decoction, Hushui Baidu Decoction, and Xuanfei Baidu Decoction.
Li Yu, director of the Science and Technology Department of the State Administration of Traditional Chinese Medicine, once introduced that "three drugs" are old drugs that have been approved for marketing, such as Lianhua Qingwen Capsules, which can relieve symptoms such as fever, cough, and fatigue, and "effectively reduce the rate of weight loss. ", to promote nucleic acid conversion to negative; Jinhua Qinggan Granules was developed in 2009 to fight influenza A, and has obvious efficacy in treating mild symptoms of the new crown and ordinary patients. "It can shorten the time of fever, not only can improve the recovery of lymphocytes and white blood cells. rate, and related immunological indicators can be improved.”
Reuters also reported that the Chinese Medicine Cooperation Center jointly established by China and Pakistan had conducted a clinical trial on the efficacy of "Jinhua Qinggan Granules" in the treatment of new crowns. The test subjects were 300 patients treated at home. Moderate new crown patients have a significant curative effect, with an effective rate of 82.67%.
Jinhua Qinggan Granules are similar in composition to Lianhua Qingwen Capsules, and contain seven medicinal ingredients: honeysuckle, gypsum, forsythia, ephedra, bitter almond, licorice and mint.
These medicinal materials mainly come from the bases of two classic traditional Chinese medicine prescriptions: Maxing Ganshi Decoction and Yinqiao Powder - the former comes from the "Treatise on Febrile Diseases" written by medical scientist Zhang Zhongjing in the late Eastern Han Dynasty, which is used for the treatment of "wheezing due to sweating, five major fevers" The latter comes from the "Wen Disease Diagnosis" written by Wu Jutong, a famous doctor of the Qing Dynasty, which is used for the treatment of "not aversion to cold but thirst at the beginning".
It must be noted that, since the two types of medicines can be regarded as derivative prescriptions based on the same type of base recipe and added or subtracted according to different pharmacological ideas, the public must not take them at the same time, and consult a Chinese medicine practitioner first.
Huoxiangzhengqi water has recently become one of the anti-epidemic Chinese patent medicines that many people have snapped up.
(file picture)
Integrated Traditional Chinese and Western Medicine is more suitable for long-term patients
Most people are accustomed to "dualistic" thinking, and doctors always advise "to avoid mixing Chinese medicine and Western medicine", it is easier for everyone to view "Chinese medicine" and "Western medicine" separately or even against each other.
However, Au Haoting believes that there is currently no specific drug for the new crown. Hong Kong may wish to adopt a treatment plan of "integrated traditional Chinese and Western medicine" to alleviate the symptoms of patients, speed up the nucleic acid conversion to negative, and relieve the pressure of front-line medical treatment.
He mentioned that the mainland has been adopting this scheme and it has been quite effective.
Au Haoting explained that Chinese and Western medicine have their own strengths.
Western medicine has contributed a lot in the early stages of the new crown, including identifying how the virus spreads to block infection, and developing vaccines to improve immunity.
The characteristic of traditional Chinese medicine is that it "treats according to the individual". Although most patients have symptoms such as fever and cold, the prescriptions will be adjusted according to the different constitutions of the patients. Symptoms such as dizziness and eye drowsiness” are relatively more suitable for patients with long-term chronic diseases.
Registered TCM physician Chen Wenhan recently submitted an article to "Hong Kong 01", referring to the clinical data of the mainland's treatment with integrated traditional Chinese and Western medicine: "In 2020, Wuhan Traditional Chinese Medicine Hospital treated patients with severe new crowns, and found that early intervention of traditional Chinese medicine can significantly reduce the mortality rate of patients with severe diseases. 52.9% reduced to 18.2%; a study by Tongji Medical College of Huazhong University of Science and Technology found that the chance of critically ill patients with COVID-19 reduced from 24.37% to 3.68% with the addition of traditional Chinese medicine compared with Western medicine alone; Compared with ordinary patients, the use of proprietary Chinese medicines and protocol prescriptions can be more effective in preventing the aggravation of the disease than antiviral drugs, and the rate of severe disease is reduced by 2-6 times.”
Au Haoting, a registered Chinese medicine practitioner at Huixin Chinese Medicine Clinic, said that the characteristic of Chinese medicine is that it "treats according to the individual". Although patients also have symptoms such as fever and cold, the prescription will be adjusted according to the patient's constitution.
(provided by respondents)
80% of severely ill patients in mainland choose traditional Chinese medicine for intervention
Au Hao Ting pointed out that 80% of hospitalized severe new crown patients in the mainland are willing to use traditional Chinese medicine intervention and accept the combination of traditional Chinese and Western medicine; more than 90% of mild patients are willing to use traditional Chinese medicine intervention.
"Actually, as early as 2003, when SARS started, there was already the intervention of traditional Chinese medicine to relieve symptoms, slow down the condition, stabilize the blood oxygen index, and reduce the number of people using ventilators." He said that the World Health Organization had already recognized China's Medicine can play a role in a pandemic.
In fact, the international recognition of TCM is increasing.
In 2015, the Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine was awarded to Tu Youyou, a pharmacist at the Chinese Academy of Chinese Medical Sciences, for her discovery of artemisinin.
Artemisinin is extracted from the traditional Chinese medicinal material "Qinghao", and its components and derivatives are currently the fastest-acting anti-Plasmodium falciparum malaria drugs.
Tu Youyou said after winning the award: "Artemisinin is a gift from traditional Chinese medicine to the people of the world."
In contrast, the development of Chinese medicine in Hong Kong is not as popular as Western medicine.
Just as the COVID-19 epidemic has afflicted Hong Kong for two years, although many Chinese medicine groups are looking forward to joining the anti-epidemic team, the SAR government has not paid attention to it. "Traditional Chinese Medicine Special Treatment Service for Inpatients".
However, the factor preventing Chinese medicine from joining the anti-epidemic team may not be "science" but "system".
"The Chinese medicine system in the Mainland is very different from that in Hong Kong." Au Ho-ting explained that there are more than 8,000 Chinese medicine practitioners in Hong Kong, but most of them serve private clinics. Once launched by the state, it is necessary to participate in the fight against the epidemic, go to the isolation point on duty, and provide traditional Chinese medicine diagnosis and treatment services.
Chinese medicine practitioners hope to be more active in fighting the epidemic
In terms of demand, the public's acceptance of traditional Chinese medicine is not low. However, the public medical system with a severe epidemic situation and a heavy burden of Western medicine, a large number of mild patients who are still stranded in the community urgently need professional medical services.
The Charity Fund of the Hong Kong Chinese Orthopaedic Society of Traditional Chinese Medicine, where Au Hao Ting is located, has recently launched a new crown online free clinic activity, providing remote consultation and prescribing services for patients with positive rapid tests.
"We only put the event publicity on Facebook yesterday. After one night, we are already full-booking (there is no quota)." Au Haoting said that the event was sponsored by a pharmaceutical company. For patients who cook medicine, "the pharmacy can pre-cook the medicine and concentrate it into granules. The patient only needs to boil it with hot water to take it."
Au Haoting said that the number of TCM physicians participating in the free clinic is abundant, but due to the financial problem and the pressure of pharmacy work, there are only 160 places for the first event. "If the pharmacy and various supporting facilities can support, the number of places may increase to 200 to 300 people.” Au continued, the Chinese medicine practitioners also hope to give back to the society, “There are 8,000 Chinese medicine practitioners in Hong Kong, of which 5,000 to 6,000 are qualified to prescribe medicines. If you can look at twenty to thirty symptoms, you can actually help a lot of people.”