AN infectious disease expert yesterday said the new coronavirus disease (COVID-19) Omicron subvariant XBB may have already entered the Philippines without health authorities noticing it.
The XBB strain, also known as BA.2.10, is an Omicron subvariant that was first detected in August in India and has since been detected in more than 17 countries, including Australia, Bangladesh, Denmark, Japan and the United States.
Dr. Rontgene Solante, in an interview with radio DzBB, said the entry of the new subvariant is possible since the country’s borders are already open, there is increased people’s mobility, and there is lower COVID-19 testing and genome sequencing.
Solante also said many mild cases no longer go to hospitals and instead, just stay home to recuperate.
He, however, clarified that there is still no report that XBB subvariant cases have already been detected by the Department of Health.
Asked during the radio interview of the new subvariant could be the cause of the uptrend in cases, Solante replied: “Hindi natin ma-rule out iyan kasi unang-una, ang mga tine-test natin ngayon for sequencing, hindi na ganoon karami ang mga samples. Pangalawa, we have an open border. We have daily flights with Singapore (We cannot rule that out because first, the samples we are testing now for sequencing are not that many anymore. Second, we have an open border. We have daily flights with Singapore),” he said.
“There’s a possibility that this variant is already present here, but we don’t know. We don’t know yet kasi hindi pa naman nakikita doon sa Philippine Genome Center (because it hasn’t been detected by the Philippine Genome Center yet),” he also said.
Solante noted the entry and exit of travelers from Singapore, which is now experiencing a COVID-19 wave largely driven by the XBB subvariant, which is also said to be the current dominant variant in Bangladesh.
Solante said it is alarming to observe that around 75 percent of the people in Singapore have already been boosted, and yet the current transmission rate is still high.
“Singapore has a highly boosted population, 75 percent. Iyun iyung nakakabahala, despite na mataas ang booster nila, may naka-eskapo pa rin na variants ngayon na cause ng cases nila (That is disturbing because despite their high booster coverage, this variant escaped immunity and is now the main cause of their cases),” Solante said.
Solante reiterated the need to get boosted, especially those in the vulnerable sector, particularly the elders and those with comorbidities.
He also again emphasized the importance of following heath protocols despite the easing of the face mask policy and the increased mobility.
