Data Mining and Analysis of Prescription Rules for Plague in Ancient Books of Case Records of Qing Dynasty

Objective To analyze the prescription rules for pestilence in ancient books of case records, and provide reference for treatment of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID19); Methods The medical cases of warm diseases in ancient times were selected as the source before data extraction rules were made. TCM Miner was used to conduct the counts and analysis of association rules, and Cloud Platform of Ancient and Modern Medical Cases was used for complex network analysis. Results A total of141 medical cases were found in the 14 ancient books of case records, involving 66 formulae and 142 Chinese medicinals. The formulae mainly included Xiao Chaihu Tang (Minor Bupleurum Decoction), Dayuan Yin (Membrane Source-Opening Beverage), and JiuweiQianghuo Tang (Nine Ingredients Notopterygium Decoction), while the medicinals mainly included Lianqiao (Fructus Forsythiae), Fuling (Poria), and Shichangpu (RhizomaAcoriTatarinowii). Conlusion The prescriptions against pestilence in ancient times highlight clearing heat and toxins, cooling the blood, resolving dampness and opening the orifices, which is also combined with releasing the exterior.