Background: A novel coronavirus was identified in December, 2019 in Wuhan, China, and traditional Chinese medicine (TCM) played an active role in combating the novel coronavirus pneumonia (NCP) caused by this fast-spreading virus COVID-19. Thus, we aimed to explore TCM characteristics of clinical efficacy to NCP, as well as to optimize Qingfei Paidu decoction (QFPDD) and the recommended formulas to NCP by National Health Commission (NHC). Methods:Chinese medical sciences theory and clinical application of TCM were analyzed. A total of 54 NCP patients were observed in a hospital from Wuhan, whose clinical characteristics and utilization of Chinese Medicines (CMs) were described. Paired t test was used to measure the change of patients' hemogram during hospitalization period, indicating the effect of CMs. Multiple linear regression analysis was applied to explore the factors affecting the length of hospital stay. Network pharmacology analysis was applied to figure out the performance of NHC-recommended formulas of five disease stages at levels of compounds, targets and pathways. Result:The average length of hospital stay was 8.96 days. Patients over 45 stayed 9.79 days in hospital in average, longer than 7.64 days of patients under 45. Comparing the hemograms between admission and discharge of hospital, the number of leukocytes, neutrophil, lymphocyte and platelet increased, while the numbers of erythrocytes, hemoglobin concentration and hematocrit decreased. According to the standard coefficients of regression, the factor affecting the length of stay for the most was CMs in category of invigorating spleen and removing dampness (ISRD), followed by administrating CMs, male, and cough. Thirty-two CMs were screened after deleting duplication from QFPDD and NHC-recommended formulas. Compound quercetin, luteolin, kaempferol, acacetin etc., were all involved in the treatment of various disease stages on the compound level both in generality and individuality.Conclusion: TCM has a systemic theoretical understanding on the pathological evolution and a positive clinical efficacy on NCP. The CMs of ISRD improved patients' recovery, suggesting the importance of regulating intestinal function and keeping microenvironmental balance in TCM treatment of NCP. The active compounds from QFPDD and NHC-recommended formulas contribute to recovery of varied disease progresses during TCM treating NCP. © The Author(s) 2020. This article is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License, which permits use, sharing, adaptation, distribution and reproduction in any medium or format, as long as you give appropriate credit to the original author(s) and the source, provide a link to the Creative Commons licence, and indicate if changes were made. The images or other third party material in this article are included in the article' s Creative Commons licence, unless indicated otherwise in a credit line to the material. If material is not included in the article'

Background: As one of the most common symptoms perplexing aged people, an understanding about chronic pain is needed with the aging of population in China. This study aimed to figure out the characteristics and trends of chronic pain among Chinese middle aged and elderly people in the past decades. Methods: The nationwide survey data of China Health and Retirement Longitudinal Study from 2008 to 2015 were analyzed to describe the characteristics of chronic pain, including its prevalence, intensity and location, pain patients’ quality of life, treatment, and recognitions on pain. Chi-square test and t test were used to compare chronic pain in different years and among participants in different demographic groups. Binary logistic regression was applied to explore factors affecting chronic pain. Result: A total of 62481 middle aged and elderly participants were investigated on chronic pain in 2008, 2011, 2012, 2013 and 2015, and 30.13% of them suffered from chronic pain. The factors affecting chronic pain included age, gender,education, living area, disability, chronic disease, occupation, and food expenditure. Chronic pain located mostly in waist, accounting 13.60% of body pain, followed by legs and knees. Patients with mild, moderate, and severe pain accounted 37.38%, 29.70% and 32.92%, respectively. Pain patients slept 5.86 (±2.05) hours one night in average, which was significantly shorter than overall participants. There were 75.20% of pain patients suffered from depression, which was significantly more than that among overall participants. From 2013 to 2015, the proportion of pain patients receiving no treatment decreased from 39.35% to 26.80%, and the prevalence of taking traditional Chinese medicine, western medicine, acupuncture, and professional massage therapy all increased. Patients’ recognition on pain became diversified by time. Conclusion: There were 30.13% of Chinese middle age and elderly people suffering from chronic pain, which were more likely to happen in female, rural, and chronic diseases patients. Chronic pain interfered significantly on patients’ quality of life, and mainly located in waist, legs, and knees. In recent years, more patients received treatment to relieve pain, which might indicate a gradual awareness of chronic pain among middle age and elderly in China.