Old North News

There were 72 deaths with COVID-19 listed as the underlying cause reported in North Carolina during the week ending Aug. 13, 2022, no changes from the previous week, according to The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

In the week ending Aug. 13, 2022, there were 1,950 deaths in the state. 18.1% of deaths were caused by heart disease, 19.2% were from cancer and 9.1% were from COVID-19. Additionally, 9.7% 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	Deaths in Week Ending Aug. 13, 2022	Deaths in Week Ending Aug. 6, 2022
Malignant neoplasms (cancerous tumor)	375	338
Heart disease	353	346
Cerebrovascular diseases	113	128
COVID-19 (multiple cause)	106	110
Chronic lower respiratory diseases	91	93
COVID-19 (underlying cause)	72	72
Alzheimer's disease	65	91
Diabetes mellitus	57	59
Nephritis, nephrotic syndrome and nephrosis	34	31
Influenza and pneumonia	22	24

Cause of Death	Deaths in Week Ending Aug. 13, 2022	Deaths in Week Ending Aug. 6, 2022
Alzheimer disease and dementia	190	195