Yellowhammer Times

There were 46 deaths with chronic lower respiratory disease listed as the underlying cause reported in Alabama during the week ending September 25, a 25.8 percent decrease from the previous week, according to The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

In the week ending September 25, there were 1,397 deaths in the state. 16.9 percent of deaths were caused by heart disease, 13.2 percent were from cancer and 56.7 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 2021-09-25	Number of Deaths 2021-09-18
COVID-19 (multiple cause)	404	464
COVID-19 (underlying cause)	388	446
Heart disease	236	300
Malignant neoplasms (cancerous tumor)	185	191
Cerebrovascular diseases	61	52
Alzheimer's disease	57	62
Chronic lower respiratory diseases	46	62
Diabetes mellitus	28	23
Nephritis, nephrotic syndrome and nephrosis	21	22
Influenza and pneumonia	14	23

Cause of Death	Number of Deaths 2021-09-25	Number of Deaths 2021-09-18
Alzheimer disease and dementia	99	109