Objective

2

To summarize the traditional Chinese medicine （TCM） syndrome characteristics of the coronavirus disease 2019 （COVID-19） patients infected by Delta variant， and to discuss the treatment strategies.

Methods

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The TCM syndromes of the 107 COVID-19 patients infected by Delta variant in Guangzhou were investigated， and the data were analyzed by entering into the TCM Clinical Emergency Data Collection Platform， including basic information， onset time， clinical symptoms at admission， tongue manifestation， disease diagnosis and classification.

Results

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The main symptoms of the 107 patients at admission were fever （78 cases， 72.9% ）， cough （59 cases， 55.1%）， expectoration （53 cases， 49.5% ）， fatigue （24 cases， 22.4%）， dry throat （22 cases， 20.6%）， aversion to co1d （21 cases， 19.6%）， head and body pain （20 cases， 18.7%）. The tongue body was mostly light red （35/89， 39.3%）， red （27/89， 30.3%） and pale （13/89， 14.6%）； the tongue shape was mostly tender （24/81， 29.6%）， thin （11/81， 13.6%）， and teeth-marked （9/81， 11.1%）； the color of the tongue coating was commonly pale white （46/91， 50.5%） and yellow （41/91， 45.1%）； the greasy coating was seen in 62.1% （54/87） patients.

Conclusion

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The Delta variant COVID-19 still belongs to the category of “Epidemic Diseases” in TCM， and the core pathogenesis is summer-damp transforming into heat，the epidemic toxins invading the lungs， and the depletion of the vital

qi

. Damp， heat， toxins and deficiency are the main characteristics. The TCM strategy of “individualized formula and strategy， as well as early and whole-stage healthy

qi

-reinforcement” is suggested， which is implemented based on the regional climate and humanistic characteristics， and the clinical types of patients. The therapeutic principles and methods are clearing summerheat-heat and removing dampness， diffusing the lungs and resolving toxins， unblocking the bowels and discharging heat， regulating intestines and treating the lungs. The TCM treatment tailored to different classifications， and the integration of TCM and western medicine have shown good effects， under which the epidemic has been controlled.