Yellowhammer Times

There were 55 deaths with chronic lower respiratory disease listed as the underlying cause reported in Alabama during the week ending March 12, a 5.8% increase over the previous week, according to The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

In the week ending March 12, there were 791 deaths in the state. 23.1% of deaths were caused by heart disease, 15.9% were from cancer and 17.1% were from COVID-19. Additionally, 7.3% 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 March 12	Deaths in Week Ending March 5
Heart disease	183	213
Malignant neoplasms (cancerous tumor)	126	127
COVID-19 (multiple cause)	75	125
COVID-19 (underlying cause)	60	108
Chronic lower respiratory diseases	55	52
Cerebrovascular diseases	38	54
Alzheimer's disease	31	39
Nephritis, nephrotic syndrome and nephrosis	25	24
Diabetes mellitus	19	22
Influenza and pneumonia	15	12

Cause of Death	Deaths in Week Ending March 12	Deaths in Week Ending March 5
Alzheimer disease and dementia	58	75