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For the second straight day, Dallas County is reporting a jump in emergency room visits related to COVID-19 Thursday along with 10 more deaths and 1,201 new confirmed cases of the infection. Dallas County officials said in a statement Thursday afternoon that "emergency room visits for COVID-19 like symptoms in Dallas County increased to 824 in the 24-hour period ending Wednesday night. A day before, the county reported 786 ER visits over the 24 hour period. The county added there were currently 831 people in acute care being treated for COVID-19 infections, 60 more than on Wednesday. "Things will get worse before they get better and it's up to all of us to wear our masks whenever around people outside of our own home," said Dallas County Judge Clay Jenkins in a statemen...

The COVID-19 pandemic may be taking a toll on Americans’ heart health, even if they’re not infected with the virus: According to research published Thursday in JAMA Open Network, cases of broken heart syndrome are on the rise among people without the illness. The condition, which is distinct from a heart attack, goes by several names, including stress cardiomyopathy or takotsubo syndrome. It occurs when a part of the heart becomes enlarged and is unable to pump blood effectively. Unlike a heart attack, which is caused by clogged arteries, broken heart syndrome is preceded by intense emotional or physical stress. Full coverage of the coronavirus outbreak “The increase in socioeconomic and psychological stress from the pandemic has literally increased stress cardiomyopathy,” Dr. Ankur Ka...

The roulette wheel that decides who lives and dies from the coronavirus is weighted by the type of blood coursing through the veins of victims, gifting some with innate resistance and dooming others to misery and torment. Infectious disease specialists say the worldwide pandemic is especially cruel to people with type A blood, which apparently lacks certain compounds that help fight off the disease. A study published June 17 in the New England Journal of Medicine found that people with type A blood have a higher risk of contracting the disease and suffering complications. The analysis, conduc...

With coronavirus cases surging in California, there are growing doubts that indoor dining and bar service will reopen anytime soon as health officials zero-in on how to slow the spread of COVID-19. Public health officials say indoor dining and drinking pose more significant public health risks than other retail activities, even with social distancing. Patrons must take off their masks to eat and drink, they often are engaged in conversation and breathe in indoor air that may be contaminated by the virus and get circulated by air conditioning — all of which can spread COVID-19.

She wasn't sick on May 8 when she went to The Woman's Hospital of Texas in Houston -- and never showed any coronavirus symptoms. She was admitted for observation because she was considered high-risk and her doctor wanted to monitor her and her babies' health for the final weeks of the pregnancy. Sillero told CNN that she hadn't left her house since March, so she thought the coronavirus test would just a routine precaution. "When I got the news, it was very shocking. I could not believe it," she said. Her husband also tested positive and was also asymptomatic, she said. Sillero said her mom and her 5-year-old son, Alexander, both tested negative, even though they'd all been together. Her mom was able to care for Alexander. Being away from her family was tough, but they were able to Fa...