Mountain State Times

There were 10 deaths with Alzheimer's disease listed as the underlying cause reported in West Virginia during the week ending June 11, 2022, a 47.4% decrease from the previous week, according to The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

In the week ending June 11, 2022, there were 402 deaths in the state. 17.2% of deaths were caused by heart disease, 22.4% were from cancer and 7.5% were from COVID-19. Additionally, 9.2% 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 11, 2022	Deaths in Week Ending June 4, 2022
Malignant neoplasms (cancerous tumor)	90	78
Heart disease	69	76
Chronic lower respiratory diseases	26	26
Cerebrovascular diseases	23	19
COVID-19 (multiple cause)	18	13
Diabetes mellitus	14	11
COVID-19 (underlying cause)	12	< 10
Alzheimer's disease	10	19
Influenza and pneumonia	< 10	< 10
Nephritis, nephrotic syndrome and nephrosis	< 10	15

Cause of Death	Deaths in Week Ending June 11, 2022	Deaths in Week Ending June 4, 2022
Alzheimer disease and dementia	37	45