As one school year comes to an end, KPRC 2 health reporter Haley Hernandez shows how viruses and stomach bugs are going around.

Federal health officials say three women who were diagnosed with HIV after getting “vampire facial” procedures at an unlicensed New Mexico medical spa are believed to be the first documented cases of people contracting the virus through a cosmetic procedure using needles.

In addition to springtime seasonal allergies, people are suffering complications from that like hay fever, and skin rashes. Some are also feeling even worse with lots of upper respiratory infections across the area.

The Montgomery County Public Health District has received confirmation of the first probable case of West Nile virus in the area for 2023.

The city of Houston's chief medical officer talks importance of getting tested for the virus early.

Texas Parks and Wildlife Department officials said Tuesday that a highly contagious and easily transmissible virus called Highly Pathogenic Avian Influenza, or HPAI, had infected the first mammal in the state.

Ridge Point High School, a Fort Bend ISD school, confirmed its second case of monkeypox among students on Thursday.

As the old and young come together this holiday season, doctors are warning not to let COVID overshadow another dangerous virus.

The Texas Department of State Health Services has confirmed a probable case of West Nile virus encephalitis in a Fort Bend County resident, Fort Bend County Health & Human Services announced Friday.

Officials have confirmed Thursday a positive case of the West Nile Virus in Sugar Land, according to a press release.

The U.N. General Assembly has overwhelmingly approved a declaration calling for urgent action to end AIDS by 2030, noting “with alarm” that the COVID-19 pandemic has exacerbated inequalities and pushed access to AIDS medicines, treatments and diagnosis further off track.

HOUSTON – With all adults in Texas now able to sign up for the COVID vaccine, many employers are coming up with plans to encourage their employees to get vaccinated. We are 22,000-square-feet and it’s just we have to protect everybody.”For now, at the Rice Village salon, it’s not a mandate for employees to get the vaccine, but they are strongly encouraging it. We have to protect our clientele and we have to protect our business. AdWe’ve checked with several local businesses and most, for now, said they are strongly encouraging their employees to get vaccinated, but not requiring it at this time. Houston Mayor Sylvester Turner’s office said the Mayor is doing the same thing; encouraging municipal employees to get the vaccine, but not requiring it.

Will the coronavirus ever go away? (AP Illustration/Peter Hamlin)WASHINGTON – Will the coronavirus ever go away? But many experts believe it’s likely the disease will eventually ease from a crisis to a nuisance like the common cold. The only virus that’s ever been eradicated from the human population is smallpox. __The AP is answering your questions about the coronavirus in this series.

HOUSTON – With cold temperatures headed to the Greater Houston area, a local medical professional asked people to continue to exercise precautions indoors. She noted viruses thrive in colder temperatures. She said the cold weather contributes to a recipe for concern when it comes to spreading viruses. “Most respiratory viruses are able to infect you better at lower temperatures,” Yancey said. We do not want to see another surge in the spring because of these variants,” Yancey said.

Medical personnel of a nursing home awaiting French Health Minister Olivier Veran in Clamart, south of Paris, Friday, Nov. 6, 2020. Virus pressure is mounting at French nursing homes, where more than 400 people with the virus have died in the past week. “I cry every day,” said Patricia Deliry, 81, whose daughter usually provides daily assistance at her Paris care home but has been kept away for the past two weeks as part of the home's virus protection efforts. Germany launched a similar antigen test effort at nursing homes this week. France is currently under a new partial lockdown as overall virus hospitalizations and deaths have risen sharply in recent weeks, but nursing homes are allowed to stay open if they take precautions.

A lot of this election has been focused on the pandemic but the virus itself doesn’t identify with a political party. In fact, the virus can cause severe complications in any age group, although the most harm is often to the elderly and chronically ill.KPRC 2 wanted to debunk one myth that’s been thrown around: Masks will go away after the election. So, in any county with 20 or more positive COVID-19 cases, people must wear masks with few exceptions. Although many elements of the pandemic have been politicized, of all the doctors and hospital CEOs interviewed by KPRC 2 Health Reporter Haley Hernandez, none of them anticipate mask orders going away after the election. “It’s not going to go away and God willing we’ll get a vaccine soon.

WASHINGTON – The United States has declared a public health emergency because of a new virus that hit China and has spread to other nations. Health and Human Services Secretary Alex Azar also announced that President Donald Trump will temporarily bar entry to the U.S. of foreign nationals believed to be a risk of transmitting the virus. The new restrictions begin Sunday afternoon. Americans returning from Hubei province, the center of the outbreak, will be required to undergo 14 days of quarantine. Others returning from elsewhere in China will be allowed to self-monitor their condition for a similar period.

BEIJING (AP) – The World Health Organization declared the outbreak sparked by a new virus in China that has been exported to more than a dozen countries as a global emergency Thursday after the number of cases spiked tenfold in a week. Eighteen other countries have since reported cases, as scientists race to understand how exactly the virus is spreading and how severe it is. Outbreak specialists worry that the spread of new viruses from patients to health workers can signal the virus is becoming adapted to human transmission. There have been cases reported of the infectious virus spreading to others in a household or workplace in China and elsewhere. In comparison, the SARS virus killed about 10% of people who caught it.

WUHAN, China – More than 100 staffers from the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention are being deployed to three US airports to check passengers arriving from Wuhan, China, for fever and other symptoms of a mysterious new virus that's killed two and infected dozens in China, the CDC announced Friday. The CDC took these steps after travelers from Wuhan recently arrived in Thailand and Japan infected with the new virus. He added that much more common illnesses, such as the flu, are "much bigger threats" to Americans than the new virus from China. To learn more about this new virus, health authorities are taking a close look at SARS. SARS did spread person to person through close contact such as kissing, sharing utensils or talking to someone within 3 feet.