A Review of Current Clinical Research on Herbal Monotherapy for Coronavirus Disease-19 (COVID-19)

Abstract

Objectives: The purpose of this study was to evaluate the effectiveness and safety of traditional herbal medicine as a stand-alone treatment group through major English databases due to the lack of RCTs in Korea, and to provide a review of the herbal interventions used.Methods: Using four databases (Pubmed, EMBASE, OASIS, RISS), combination of words such as “Coronavirus” “RCT” “Herb” “Decoction” “TCM” were used. RCTs using herbal medicines to treat coronavirus were searched. Final 4 studies were selected by two authors according to inclusion and exclusion criteria.Results: A total of 1,435 patients were studied. The Chinese herbs used in the treatment group were Shengmai Yin, JingYinGuBiao granules, Jinhua Qinggan granules, and Bufei Huoxue capsules. The intervention group showed greater attenuation of pneumonia lesions on CT. Also, improvement in 6-min walk distance (6MWD), and negative conversion rate in treatment group were reported. Furthermore, scores on the Fatigue Assessment Inventory (FAI) were lower in the herbal group than in the placebo group. The median time to recovery of COVID-19 related symptoms was shorter in TCM group compared to the control group. Reported adverse effects were diarrhea, liver dysfunction, and excessive menstruation, and two papers did not mention side effects in detail.Conclusion: Herbal medicine alone can increase the conversion rate of viral negativity and relieve COVID-19 related symptoms without significant adverse effects.