- 期刊
- Ahead-of-Print
Telemedicine Combined the Herbal Medicine, Jing Guan Fang, for COVID-19 Patients and Close Contacts during the 2021 Pandemic Outbreak in Taiwan: An Observational Study
遠端醫療結合中藥淨冠方於2021年臺灣疫情爆發期間治療COVID-19病人和密切接觸者：一項觀察性研究
摘要
Objective: In mid-May 2021, in response to a surge of COVID-19 cases in Taiwan, the government authorized the use of telemedicine to provide treatment for individuals undergoing quarantine or self-isolation. Herbal medicine (HM) was part of the services. This observational study aimed to evaluate the integration of the telemedicine system and herbal medicine Jing Guan Fang (JGF). Methods: The telemedicine service was provided by Linsen Chinese Medicine and Kunming Branch (LCMKB) of the Taipei City Hospital from May 30th to Aug 19th, 2021. A total of 38 participants were included in the study. Results: First, the participants gave positive feedback on telemedicine service and the treatment effectiveness of JGF, with satisfaction scores of 9.0 and 8.6, respectively. Second, while the symptom duration persisted for 15 days, as reported in foreign studies, patients treated with JGF experienced a reduction to 10.5 days on average, particularly in non-hospitalized patients (8.2 days). Early administration of JGF (within 3 days) yielded better outcomes, with a statistically significant reduction in mean symptom duration to 4.0 days compared to later administration. Third, the total cost of telemedicine combined with herbal medicine was approximately US $196 per individual. Conclusion: The combination of telemedicine and JGF is a highly satisfactory and cost-effective adjuvant therapy for treating COVID-19 patients or close contacts.
並列摘要
目的：2021年5月中臺灣因應COVID-19病例激增，政府授權使用遠程醫療為檢疫、隔離的病人提供治療，中醫藥也參與其中。這項觀察性研究的目的是評估遠程醫療系統與中藥淨冠方的整合。方法：此遠程醫療服務由臺北市立聯合醫院林森中醫昆明院區於2021年5月30日至8月19日提供，最終有38名病人的資料納入研究。結果：首先，病人對此遠程醫療服務給予正向回饋，醫療服務和淨冠方療效之平均滿意度分別為9.0和8.6。其次，對比國外研究感染後症狀持續時間為15天，接受淨冠方治療的病人縮短為平均10.5天，尤其是在未住院患者中的症狀持續時間只有8.2天。且早期（3天內）服用淨冠方與較晚服用者相比，前者症狀只有平均4天，顯示盡早服用有更佳的效果。再者，遠程醫療結合中藥的總成本約為每人196美元。結論：這項研究表明，遠程醫療結合淨冠方治療COVID-19病人或密切接觸者，為一種高度滿意且具成本效益的輔助療法。