Treatment of coronavirus disease 2019 with saikatsugekito: A case series

Irie, Yasuhito; Nakae, Hajime; Fukui, Shin

AIM: Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID‐19) is a serious disease that has spread worldwide. In the absence of any effective treatment for mild‐to‐moderate‐stage COVID‐19, we report that treating patients with Kampo medicines could reduce or prevent disease progression. Herein, we report the current status of COVID‐19 treatment with a Kampo medicine, saikatsugekito. METHODS: The clinical course of COVID‐19 in patients treated with saikatsugekito was retrospectively investigated from January 2020 to January 2021 at a hospital designated for infectious diseases in Akita City. RESULTS: Saikatsugekito was administered to 30 COVID‐19 patients, but the nine patients with infections caused by other pathogens or no symptoms and treated with steroids were excluded; finally, 21 patients were included in the study. Patients with symptoms such as fever and nasal discharge/obstruction were relieved about a week after hospitalization following treatment with saikatsugekito. However, hyposmia and ageusia persisted for a long time. CONCLUSION: Most patients recovered within a week without worsening. Our study suggests that saikatsugekito may be considered a treatment choice to relieve symptoms of mild‐to‐moderate‐stage COVID‐19.