According to the latest data from the Department of Health (DOH), four confirmed cases of mycoplasma pneumoniae, commonly known as “walking pneumonia,” have been identified in the Philippines this year.
The reported cases include one in January, one in July, and two in September.
The identified cases of mycoplasma pneumoniae were exclusively detected among the recorded instances of influenza-like illness in the Philippines.
Health Secretary Ted Herbosa clarified on Tuesday that there is no outbreak of “walking pneumonia” in the country, despite the increasing cases of respiratory illness in China and other nations.
DOH emphasized that mycoplasma pneumoniae is not a new pathogen and has been previously identified in the Philippines.
Health Undersecretary Eric Tayag stated last week that the bacterial infection, which was identified among the factors contributing to the increase in respiratory illness cases in China, especially among children, appears to operate similarly to COVID-19.
“It has the label of ‘walking pneumonia’ because you feel alright, except for COVID, it can easily progress to something that’s terrible,” said Tayag.
DOH mentioned that it is awaiting the report from the Philippine General Hospital (PGH) to determine if the rise in pneumonia cases in the facility is attributed to mycoplasma pneumoniae.
PH detects 4 cases of ‘walking pneumonia’ this year – DOH
In response to this situation Herbosa advised the public to adhere to health protocols reminiscent of those observed during the peak of the COVID-19 pandemic, including the wearing of face masks.
“‘Yung natutunan natin nung COVID, ‘yung social distancing at saka ‘yung pagsuot ng face mask, cough etiquette para hindi magkahawaan. Kung may sakit ang bata, wag nang papapasukin para hindi makahawa ng ibang bata sa eskwelahan,” he said.
Dr. Rontgene Solante, an infectious disease expert, reiterated that “walking pneumonia” is not a new disease.
“‘Yung sintomas nito ay kagaya din ng flu, kagaya ng ubo, lagnat, sore throat at saka ‘yung sipon-sipon. And usually ang walking pneumonia, kaya nga tinatawag siyang walking pneumonia, you don’t need to treat them,” Dr. Solante said in an interview on GTV’s Balitanghali.
“Ibig sabihin, kadalasan nito, they will recover and after 7 or 10 days they can go back to work, nawawala ang sintomas and I think this is not something to be alarmed with. Ang importante lang siguro rito, we need to implement again ‘yung mga pagsusuot ng face mask sa mga matataong lugar,” he added.