Mountain State Times

There were 21 deaths with chronic lower respiratory disease listed as the underlying cause reported in West Virginia during the week ending March 26, 2022, a 25% decrease from the previous week, according to The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

In the week ending March 26, 2022, there were 328 deaths in the state. 22.6% of deaths were caused by heart disease, 20.1% were from cancer and 14.6% were from COVID-19. Additionally, 8.2% 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 March 26, 2022	Deaths in Week Ending March 19, 2022
Heart disease	74	85
Malignant neoplasms (cancerous tumor)	66	71
COVID-19 (multiple cause)	25	33
COVID-19 (underlying cause)	23	24
Chronic lower respiratory diseases	21	28
Diabetes mellitus	16	17
Cerebrovascular diseases	16	21
Alzheimer's disease	11	14
Influenza and pneumonia	< 10	< 10
Nephritis, nephrotic syndrome and nephrosis	< 10	12

Cause of Death	Deaths in Week Ending March 26, 2022	Deaths in Week Ending March 19, 2022
Alzheimer disease and dementia	27	30