Old North News

There were 29 deaths with chronic lower respiratory disease listed as the underlying cause reported in North Carolina during the week ending October 16, a 12.1 percent decrease from the previous week, according to The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

In the week ending October 16, there were 1,077 deaths in the state. 12.1 percent of deaths were caused by heart disease, 15.8 percent were from cancer and 49.8 percent were from COVID-19. Additionally, 7.1 percent of deaths were from Alzheimer's disease and dementia.

Studies show doctors and medical examiners may underreport Alzheimer's disease and dementia-related conditions as the underlying cause of death on death certificates, according to the National Institute on Aging.

Once infected, older adults with dementia are likely to develop a more severe and dangerous illness. The diseases which make an older adult more vulnerable to COVID-19 are age-associated chronic conditions, according to the Bright Focus Foundation.

Cause of Death	Number of Deaths 2021-10-16	Number of Deaths 2021-10-09
COVID-19 (multiple cause)	277	389
COVID-19 (underlying cause)	259	375
Malignant neoplasms (cancerous tumor)	170	176
Heart disease	130	158
Alzheimer's disease	35	44
Cerebrovascular diseases	32	42
Chronic lower respiratory diseases	29	33
Diabetes mellitus	18	20
Nephritis, nephrotic syndrome and nephrosis	17	14
Influenza and pneumonia	< 10	11

Cause of Death	Number of Deaths 2021-10-16	Number of Deaths 2021-10-09
Alzheimer disease and dementia	76	81