Traditional Chinese medicine (TCM) emphasizes treatment based on syndrome differentiation, which is the core technology that can embody the characteristics and advantages of TCM diagnosis and treatment. This is based on holistic view to illustrate individual diagnosis and treatment and dynamic treatment. However, RCT, which is frequently used in TCM clinical studies, can not reflect the concept of treatment based on syndrome differentiation. The use of adaptive treatment strategies in clinical researches can adjust therapy in patients according to the changes of diseases, so it can reflect individual diagnosis and treatment and dynamic treatment. From this perspective, the process of treatment based on syndrome differentiation is a process of decision-making of adaptive treatment. So the method for developing adaptive treatment strategies can effectively evaluate the efficacy of different treatment strategies in TCM clinical studies. Adaptive treatment strategies have been used in some clinical studies from some published foreign literatures. However, the use of adaptive treatment strategies in domestic clinical researches is seldom reported. This article discussed the concept of adaptive treatment strategies and their important components in detail. In addition, it presented three methods which can take the delayed effects of the current treatment action into consideration and can compare the overall effect of different adaptive treatment strategies, with a purpose to lay some foundation for future TCM researches in the development of optimal clinical pathway and provide new ideas and methods for researches.

Traditional Chinese medicine (TCM) emphasizes treatment based on syndrome differentiation, which em-bodies the concept of individualized diagnosis and dynamic treatment on a holistic view. RCT was frequently used in TCM clinical study. However, it cannot reflect the concept of treatment based on syndrome differentiation. The use of adaptive treatment strategies (ATS) in clinical research can adjust therapy in patients according to the change of disease, so it can reflect personalized medicine and dynamic treatment. From this perspective, the process of treat-ment based on syndrome differentiation was a process of adaptive treatment decision. So the method for developing ATS can effectively evaluate the efficacy of different treatment strategies in TCM clinical study. ATS had been used in some clinical studies from published literatures abroad. However, the use of ATS in domestic clinical research was seldom been reported. This paper gave an outline of the concept of ATS. In addition, this paper focused on three methods which can take the delayed effects of current treatment action into consideration and can compare the over-all effect of different ATS. It was hoped to lay foundation for future scientific research of TCM in the implementation of SMART and provide a new idea.