The global coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic has had a massive impact on global social and economic development and human health. By combining traditional Chinese medicine (TCM) with modern medicine, the Chinese government has protected public health by supporting all phases of COVID-19 prevention and treatment, including community prevention, clinical treatment, control of disease progression, and promotion of recovery. Modern medicine focuses on viruses, while TCM focuses on differential diagnosis of patterns associated with viral infection of the body and recommends the use of TCM decoctions for differential treatment. This differential diagnosis and treatment approach, with its profoundly empirical nature and holistic view, endows TCM with an accessibility advantage and high application value for dealing with COVID-19. Here, we summarize the advantage of and evidence for TCM use in COVID-19 prevention and treatment to draw attention to the scientific value and accessibility advantage of TCM and to promote the use of TCM in response to public health emergencies.

Please cite this article as: Huang M, Liu YY, Xiong K, Yang FW, Jin XY, Wang ZQ, Zhang JH, Zhang BL. The role and advantage of traditional Chinese medicine in the prevention and treatment of COVID-19. J Integr Med. 2023; 21(5): 407–412.