By reviewing the understanding of epidemic diseases in traditional Chinese medicine（TCM）

comparing and analyzing the major epidemic diseases experienced in China in the past 20 years

it is believed that the coronavirus disease 2019（COVID-19） outbreak in December 2019 should be treated as "dampness-toxicity plagues". With the spread of the epidemic

the number of cases gradually increasing

and the clinical manifestations and onset regularity of the patients gradually becoming clear

it was found that early clinical manifestations of the disease were fever or no fever and fever often being accompanied by multiple symptoms of hiding fever

dry cough

fatigue

vomiting

loose stools

diarrhea and other digestive symptoms. The tongue coating is generally greasy

and has obvious dampness-toxicity into the disease

and the disease is located in the lung and the spleen. The majority of patients were with slow onset

long incubation period

and relatively mild symptoms

while a few patients could rapidly develop into syndromes such as phlegm and blood stasis obstructing the lung

pathogen and poison blocking the lung

and inner blocking causing collapse etc.

among whom severe to critical illness cases presented characteristics of the typical dampness-toxicity such as being sticky

difficult to cure. The convalescence period after the virus turns negative presented the characteristics of repeated pathogenic qi and lingering heat

and in particular

the repair of immune functions and tissue damage in severe patients needed to take a long time. SARS

2009 H1 N1 Flu and COVID-19 were compared and analysed

and it was believed that the epidemic diseases in modern times were mostly dampness

especially the current one. Therefore

the role of TCM should be brought into full play in the process of prevention and treatment

and we should pay attention to the treatment according to the syndrome based on eliminating dampness

detoxication

eliminating dirt and resolving turbidity.