This is a carousel. Use Next and Previous buttons to navigateThe 64-year-old man staggered into United Memorial Medical Center’s emergency room on Monday, gravely ill. It is unknown when he became infected, though the doctors believe it was recent. An X-ray showed spider webs of COVID-19, the disease caused by the novel coronavirus, coating both lungs, making them all but useless.By Thursday morning, his kidneys were failing. The staff was looking for next of kin.Death, it seemed, was moving from possible to likely in Room 409 of the hospital’s newly expanded COVID-19 unit.“I have a bad...…This is a carousel. Use Next and Previous buttons to navigateThe 64-year-old man staggered into United Memorial Medical Center’s emergency room on Monday, gravely ill. It is unknown when he became infected, though the doctors believe it was recent. An X-ray showed spider webs of COVID-19, the disease caused by the novel coronavirus, coating both lungs, making them all but useless.By Thursday morning, his kidneys were failing. The staff was looking for next of kin.Death, it seemed, was moving from possible to likely in Room 409 of the hospital’s newly expanded COVID-19 unit.“I have a bad...WW…

This is a carousel. Use Next and Previous buttons to navigateEvidence is growing that a mutated coronavirus strain, the main one circulating in the Houston area, is more contagious than the original virus in China.Two new research papers show that the newer strain is more transmissible, a possibility first suggested by a team of scientists in May. At the time, that suggestion was considered highly speculative by many scientists, including some in Houston.“A summary of the data thus far suggests that this strain has gained a fitness advantage over the original and is more transmissible as a...…This is a carousel. Use Next and Previous buttons to navigateEvidence is growing that a mutated coronavirus strain, the main one circulating in the Houston area, is more contagious than the original virus in China.Two new research papers show that the newer strain is more transmissible, a possibility first suggested by a team of scientists in May. At the time, that suggestion was considered highly speculative by many scientists, including some in Houston.“A summary of the data thus far suggests that this strain has gained a fitness advantage over the original and is more transmissible as a...WW…

Most of the novel coronavirus strains circulating in the Houston area are a type that a controversial report recently said had mutated to become more contagious, according to a Houston Methodist Hospital analysis of the genetic makeup of the first infections treated here.The Methodist analysis, which has not yet been peer reviewed, found the virus that causes COVID-19 was introduced into the Houston area beginning in early March from a multitude of geographic regions, including Asia, Europe and South America.“We now have a snapshot of what the virus looked like after arriving in Houston,”...…Most of the novel coronavirus strains circulating in the Houston area are a type that a controversial report recently said had mutated to become more contagious, according to a Houston Methodist Hospital analysis of the genetic makeup of the first infections treated here.The Methodist analysis, which has not yet been peer reviewed, found the virus that causes COVID-19 was introduced into the Houston area beginning in early March from a multitude of geographic regions, including Asia, Europe and South America.“We now have a snapshot of what the virus looked like after arriving in Houston,”...WW…

In what was considered the worst season in years, the flu and related complications killed nearly 10,000 Texans in 2017-2018, according to state health officials.The 9,470 deaths represent a spike of nearly 27 percent from the 7,459 deaths in the 2016-2017 season, and an increase of nearly 82 percent over the 5,215 deaths in 2015-2016, the only previous years when overall deaths were tracked.The latest figures are likely not all-time highs, considering many past seasons were marked by similarly high hospitalization rates and more pediatric deaths.“These death totals are a reminder of the...…In what was considered the worst season in years, the flu and related complications killed nearly 10,000 Texans in 2017-2018, according to state health officials.The 9,470 deaths represent a spike of nearly 27 percent from the 7,459 deaths in the 2016-2017 season, and an increase of nearly 82 percent over the 5,215 deaths in 2015-2016, the only previous years when overall deaths were tracked.The latest figures are likely not all-time highs, considering many past seasons were marked by similarly high hospitalization rates and more pediatric deaths.“These death totals are a reminder of the...WW…

Texas Medical Center hospitals exceeded base ICU capacity for the first time since COVID-19 cases spiked over the summer, according to ominous data released Thursday, the same day a government panel’s endorsement of a vaccine stirred hope of an eventual end to the pandemic.TMC hospital officials downplayed the increase, particularly compared with much of the rest of the nation, where more than one-third of hospitals are running short of intensive care beds. But the TMC increase nevertheless required a return to “Phase 2” surge planning, in which regular beds are with additional staff and...…Texas Medical Center hospitals exceeded base ICU capacity for the first time since COVID-19 cases spiked over the summer, according to ominous data released Thursday, the same day a government panel’s endorsement of a vaccine stirred hope of an eventual end to the pandemic.TMC hospital officials downplayed the increase, particularly compared with much of the rest of the nation, where more than one-third of hospitals are running short of intensive care beds. But the TMC increase nevertheless required a return to “Phase 2” surge planning, in which regular beds are with additional staff and...WW…

This is a carousel. Use Next and Previous buttons to navigateDerrick Broze, a self-described non-vaxxer, harbors no desire to get the COVID-19 vaccine when it becomes widely available.The Pfizer vaccine, expected to arrive in some Houston-area hospitals Monday, may constitute the world’s best hope for ending the coronavirus pandemic that has killed nearly 300,000 Americans, but Broze sees it differently: He doesn’t want to be “a science experiment for a vaccine against a virus that has a very high survival rate.”“I have more concerns about the safety of the vaccine than the dangers of the...…This is a carousel. Use Next and Previous buttons to navigateDerrick Broze, a self-described non-vaxxer, harbors no desire to get the COVID-19 vaccine when it becomes widely available.The Pfizer vaccine, expected to arrive in some Houston-area hospitals Monday, may constitute the world’s best hope for ending the coronavirus pandemic that has killed nearly 300,000 Americans, but Broze sees it differently: He doesn’t want to be “a science experiment for a vaccine against a virus that has a very high survival rate.”“I have more concerns about the safety of the vaccine than the dangers of the...WW…

The drugmaker Pfizer said Monday that its coronavirus vaccine appears highly effective based on preliminary data from its late-stage clinical trial, a rare hopeful development as the pandemic continues to surge in Texas, the nation and around the globe.The data, contained in a press release, suggested the company’s vaccine may be more than 90 percent effective at preventing symptomatic COVID-19, much more than was anticipated for any of the candidates in clinical trials. The Pfizer vaccine is the first to generate late-stage data.“Tentatively, this looks like good news,” said Peter Hotez,...…The drugmaker Pfizer said Monday that its coronavirus vaccine appears highly effective based on preliminary data from its late-stage clinical trial, a rare hopeful development as the pandemic continues to surge in Texas, the nation and around the globe.The data, contained in a press release, suggested the company’s vaccine may be more than 90 percent effective at preventing symptomatic COVID-19, much more than was anticipated for any of the candidates in clinical trials. The Pfizer vaccine is the first to generate late-stage data.“Tentatively, this looks like good news,” said Peter Hotez,...WW…

This is a carousel. Use Next and Previous buttons to navigateWith the number of intensive-care patients now exceeding capacity, Texas Medical Center hospitals have begun implementing COVID-19 surge plans that leaders thought might not be necessary after numbers fell far short of projections in April and May.The hospitals this week began opening additional beds — both intensive care and regular floor beds, some new, some converted — to accommodate a surge in COVID-19 patients that has grown exponentially in the past two weeks. The actions followed the hospitals’ collective ICU bed volume...…This is a carousel. Use Next and Previous buttons to navigateWith the number of intensive-care patients now exceeding capacity, Texas Medical Center hospitals have begun implementing COVID-19 surge plans that leaders thought might not be necessary after numbers fell far short of projections in April and May.The hospitals this week began opening additional beds — both intensive care and regular floor beds, some new, some converted — to accommodate a surge in COVID-19 patients that has grown exponentially in the past two weeks. The actions followed the hospitals’ collective ICU bed volume...WW…

This is a carousel. Use Next and Previous buttons to navigateScientists around the world are scrambling to develop a vaccine to stop the spread of the new coronavirus, but the best candidate might be an experimental one stored in a Houston freezer.The vaccine, developed by researchers at Baylor College of Medicine and University of Texas Medical Branch at Galveston researchers, effectively protected mice against SARS, or severe acute respiratory syndrome, the pneumonia-causing virus from the same family that spread in the early 2000s. The vaccine never progressed to human testing because...…This is a carousel. Use Next and Previous buttons to navigateScientists around the world are scrambling to develop a vaccine to stop the spread of the new coronavirus, but the best candidate might be an experimental one stored in a Houston freezer.The vaccine, developed by researchers at Baylor College of Medicine and University of Texas Medical Branch at Galveston researchers, effectively protected mice against SARS, or severe acute respiratory syndrome, the pneumonia-causing virus from the same family that spread in the early 2000s. The vaccine never progressed to human testing because...WW…

This is a carousel. Use Next and Previous buttons to navigateThe U.S. Army will open a 30- to 50-bed COVID-19 care unit within United Memorial Medical Center, the Acres Homes hospital serving one of Houston’s hardest hit communities.An Army specialty unit of 85 doctors, nurses and other personnel will arrive at United Memorial this week and begin accepting COVID-19 patients transferred from other hospitals, according to the Southeast Texas Regional Advisory Council, which coordinates the region’s emergency medical responses.“This is certainly a step in the right direction,” said Darrell...…This is a carousel. Use Next and Previous buttons to navigateThe U.S. Army will open a 30- to 50-bed COVID-19 care unit within United Memorial Medical Center, the Acres Homes hospital serving one of Houston’s hardest hit communities.An Army specialty unit of 85 doctors, nurses and other personnel will arrive at United Memorial this week and begin accepting COVID-19 patients transferred from other hospitals, according to the Southeast Texas Regional Advisory Council, which coordinates the region’s emergency medical responses.“This is certainly a step in the right direction,” said Darrell...WW…