Old North News

There were 15 deaths with COVID-19 listed as the underlying cause reported in North Carolina during the week ending June 17, an increase over the previous week, according to The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

In the week ending June 17, there were 1,958 deaths in the state. 18.8% of deaths were caused by heart disease, 22.3% were from cancer and 2% were from COVID-19. Additionally, 10.2% 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 June 17	Deaths in Week Ending June 10
Malignant neoplasms (cancerous tumor)	436	432
Heart disease	368	368
Cerebrovascular diseases	96	106
Alzheimer's disease	87	70
Chronic lower respiratory diseases	76	95
Diabetes mellitus	54	48
Nephritis, nephrotic syndrome and nephrosis	33	39
COVID-19 (multiple cause)	25	< 10
Influenza and pneumonia	17	21
COVID-19 (underlying cause)	15	< 10

Cause of Death	Deaths in Week Ending June 17	Deaths in Week Ending June 10
Alzheimer disease and dementia	200	183