(Yicai Global) May 27 -- Lianhua Qingwen, a patented traditional Chinese medicine widely used in China to treat patients suffering from the novel coronavirus, has been shown to be an effective supportive therapy for Covid-19 patients, according to a new study.

The symptoms of 91.5 percent of Covid-19 patients treated with Lianhua Qingwen abated, according to a paper published in Phytomedicine, a peer-reviewed medical journal, on May 16. Four pills were administered three times a day over a two-week period. Of the control group, which only received conventional treatment, 82.4 percent of patients saw an improvement.

Carried out by a team of Chinese respiratory disease specialists and led by the country’s top pulmonologist Zhong Nanshan, the research is an important step toward getting traditional Chinese medical therapies recognized in the West.

The study was conducted among 284 patients who were separated into two groups. One received conventional treatment along with Lianhua Qingwen capsules and the other received only conventional treatment, according to the paper Efficacy and Safety of Lianhuaqingwen Capsules, a Repurposed Chinese Herb, in Patients with Coronavirus Disease 2019: A Multicenter, Prospective, Randomized Controlled Trial.

Lianhua Qingwen is known to have anti-viral and anti-inflammatory properties and is often used in the treatment of influenza. It is made up of a number of plants well-known for their medicinal value including Lonicera japonica, Fructus forsythia and Pogostemon cablin.

The main focus of the research was the rate of remission of major symptoms such as fever, fatigue and coughing. Other focal points were the time needed for symptoms to abate, the proportion of patients who showed improved chest computerized tomography, or CT, scans, the proportion of patients who completely recovered as well as the time and rate of conversion to a negative SARS-CoV-2 RNA test.

Some 83.8 percent of patients showed improved chest CT scans compared with 64.1 percent in the control group. And 78.9 percent recovered completely, demonstrated by two consecutive negative assays, compared with 66.2 percent.

No significant difference was found in either the rate of escalation to severe cases nor the conversion of viral assay findings. None of the patients being treated with Lianhua Qingwen suffered a severe adverse reaction.

Traditional Chinese medical treatments have been included in the National Health Commission’s Diagnosis and Treatment Plan for Pneumonia Caused by the Novel Coronavirus since its fourth edition. Drugs such as Lianhua Qingwen have been shown to have a good inhibitory effect on the cytopathic changes, or structural changes in host cells, caused by the Covid-19 virus, and are effective in relieving symptoms, previous research has demonstrated.

Editor: Kim Taylor