The Department of Health on Friday said it is monitoring the cases of pneumonia in the country amid the outbreak of respiratory diseases in China.

In a radio interview, Health Undersecretary Enrique Tayag said the department is waiting for the report of the Philippine General Hospital to determine whether the pathogen called mycoplasma pneumoniae is the reason for the influx of pneumonia cases at the hospital.

"We are waiting for their report because the testing for mycoplasma pneumoniae is not part of the routine," Tayag said.

The recent spike in cases of respiratory illness in China was attributed to mycoplasma pneumoniae, which causes "atypical pneumonia" or "walking pneumonia."

Tayag explained that the term "walking pneumonia" was used due to the disease's tendency to be more transmissible.

"It is [a] walking [pneumonia] because those who contract the disease won't notice that they are already carrying it because they can still go to work or school," he said.

Data from the Health Department showed that 158,762 pneumonia cases were reported in the Philippines from January to October.

The number of cases is 45.68 percent higher than the 108,982 cases reported in the same period last year.

Earlier this week, Health Secretary Teodoro Herbosa allayed public fears about the reported increase in cases of pneumonia and respiratory diseases in China that mostly affect children.

"We are monitoring the rise of cases of the respiratory illnesses in China. They've given their reports to WHO [World Health Organization], it is not a new virus," he said.

He added: "It's part of the seasonal endemic respiratory illness. So, I want to tell the people: Don't be worried.  We're doing our own surveillance."

Last week, the WHO formally asked China to provide more information about the respiratory illness prevailing in its northern territory. 

"WHO has made an official request to China for detailed information on an increase in respiratory illnesses and reported clusters of pneumonia in children," the UN health body said in a statement.

In response to the WHO, China reported no "unusual or novel pathogens" in clusters of child pneumonia cases.