China granted market approval for 12 new traditional Chinese medicine products last year, the largest figure in the past five years, according to a report released on Thursday. 

It was released during the National Conference of Traditional Chinese Medicines Scientific Supervision in Beijing.

Zhao Junning, deputy director of the National Medical Products administration, said during the event that the administration gave the approval for 34 TCM drugs to begin clinical trials, another five-year high.

The administration has stepped up communication with applicants seeking approval for their products to eliminate potential issues and help them devote more effort into researching TCM drugs in urgent public demand, he said

According to the report, the newly approved drugs target diseases include respiratory and digestive illnesses, and include new derivatives of ancient prescriptions, as well as newly developed prescriptions derived from the latest clinical research.

All underwent randomized, double-blinded and placebo-controlled clinical trials before being approved.

In addition, domestic drug regulators have improved an accelerated approval mechanism for TCM.

During the COVID-19 pandemic, three TCM drugs and three herbal formulas were given market approval via the expedited track, and played a positive role in helping in the fight against the novel coronavirus, the report said.