MANILA — The Philippines has detected 167 additional cases of highly contagious offshoots of the omicron COVID-19 variant, the Department of Health said Friday.

The country found 163 new cases of the omicron BA.5, 2 more cases of the BA.4 and 2 tagged as "other sublineages," latest figures from DOH show.

Of the new BA.5 infections, many were found in Davao Region, with 151 cases.

The 2 new BA.4 cases and 2 identified as "other lineages" were also reported in Davao Region.

Meanwhile, 4 new delta cases were found as well in Davao Region, the DOH said.

These are results of the latest sequencing run conducted as of Sept. 13, the agency said.

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While previous "variants of concern" like alpha and delta eventually petered out, omicron and its sublineages have dominated throughout 2022.

The BA.4 and BA.5 types have in particular helped to drive a wave of new cases of the disease in Europe and the United States in recent months.

All omicron variants tend to have a milder disease course as they settle less in the lungs and more in the upper nasal passages, causing symptoms like fever, tiredness, and loss of smell.

• PH records 15,379 COVID cases, 300 deaths in past week

In the past week, the Philippines logged 15,379 new COVID-19 cases, according to the DOH.

From Sept. 5 to 11, the country recorded an average of 2,197 daily infections, which is 10 percent lower compared to the previous week.

As of Sept. 14, some 72.8 million Filipinos have been fully vaccinated against the respiratory disease.

Of the figure, around 18.7 million have received their first booster dose while almost 2.6 million have gotten their second booster shots.

The government on Monday allowed the optional wearing of face masks among low-risk people in open spaces and outdoor settings amid the pandemic.

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— With a report from Agence France-Presse