Yellowhammer Times

There were 50 deaths with cerebrovascular disease listed as the underlying cause reported in Alabama during the week ending Aug. 27, 2022, a 4.2% increase over the previous week, according to The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

In the week ending Aug. 27, 2022, there were 957 deaths in the state. 26.3% of deaths were caused by heart disease, 16.5% were from cancer and 8.6% were from COVID-19. Additionally, 10.3% 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 Aug. 27, 2022	Deaths in Week Ending Aug. 20, 2022
Heart disease	252	232
Malignant neoplasms (cancerous tumor)	158	205
Cerebrovascular diseases	50	48
COVID-19 (multiple cause)	50	54
Alzheimer's disease	49	47
Chronic lower respiratory diseases	44	55
COVID-19 (underlying cause)	32	40
Diabetes mellitus	21	27
Nephritis, nephrotic syndrome and nephrosis	20	22
Influenza and pneumonia	17	< 10

Cause of Death	Deaths in Week Ending Aug. 27, 2022	Deaths in Week Ending Aug. 20, 2022
Alzheimer disease and dementia	99	103