Traditional Chinese Medicine has played a role in relieving symptoms of chikungunya fever as the southern province of Guangdong is experiencing an outbreak of the mosquito-borne disease, said a senior TCM expert during a news conference on Tuesday.

The province registered nearly 2,900 new cases from July 27 to Aug 2, with no report of related severe cases or deaths. There is no targeted treatment for the disease.

Zhang Zhongde, president of the Guangdong Hospital of Traditional Chinese Medicine in Guangzhou, Guangdong province, said that TCM therapies have been used to alleviate joint pain, rash and fever of chikungunya fever patients while aiding their rehabilitation.

Some TCM medicated diets — such as meat soup cooked with fermented soybean, lotus leaf and white bean — are recommended as a means to maintain immunity during the summer heat, on top of other preventive measures such as removing sewage and repelling mosquitoes.

According to Zhang, there are more than 500 ancient classics on tackling epidemic diseases and a number of preventive and treatment formulas have been developed.

Ouyang Bo, an official with the administration, said that the administration, along with the National Health Commission, has recently updated the diagnosis and treatment guideline for chikungunya fever.

The administration has also rolled out training to guide local authorities to use TCM to battle the disease.