Objective:This paper is to investigate the traditional Chinese medicine(TCM) syndrome characteristics of mild cognitive impairment in the elderly in community with cross-sectional method  Methods:Eligible participants are the residents aged 55 years and over in the 24 villages in the 5 streets(towns) in Pudong District in Shanghai. The survey is to investigate the prevalence of mild cognitive impairment in the elderly, TCM physique, and classification of TCM syndrome  Results:①There are 6 400 samples in this survey and in which 4 086 samples (88.83%) are completed, and 612 samples(14.98%) are mild cognitive impairment patients. ②There are more female patients (70.92%) than the male patients (29.08%) in the 612 samples ( P<0.05). There are more aged 70 and more (51.47%) than the aged 69 and below (48.53%) (P<0.05). In the 612 samples, there are 88.56% with education time less than 8 years and 11.44% equal and more than 8 years (P<0.05). ③There are 261 patients with biased physique patients of Normal constitution (42.65%), 351 patients with biased physique (57.40%). Most patients with biased physique belong to phlegm-dampness constitution, yang-insufficiency constitution and qi-asthenia constitution, and the least patients with biased physique belong to damp-heat constitution and allergic constitution. ④According to the classification of TCM syndrome, there are 26.11% spleen and kidney deficiency type , 20.63% hyperactivity of yang due to yin deficiency type and 10.74% qi-blood deficiency type respectively  Conclusion:Most patients of mild cognitive impairment in the elderly belong to phlegm-dampness constitution, yang-insufficiency constitution and qi-asthenia constitution, and there are more spleen and kidney deficiency type, hyperactivity of yang due to yin deficiency type and qi-blood deficiency type according to the classification of TCM syndrome. Mild cognitive impairment featured of deficient root with overdo superficial, manifest as deficient of spleen, kidney and qi-blood, and overdo of dampness and Qi-stagnation.