Mountain State Times

There were 15 deaths with diabetes mellitus listed as the underlying cause reported in West Virginia during the week ending Sept. 3, 2022, a 16.7% decrease from the previous week, according to The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

In the week ending Sept. 3, 2022, there were 475 deaths in the state. 16.8% of deaths were caused by heart disease, 16% were from cancer and 13.3% were from COVID-19. Additionally, 8.4% 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 Sept. 3, 2022	Deaths in Week Ending Aug. 27, 2022
Heart disease	80	83
Malignant neoplasms (cancerous tumor)	76	95
COVID-19 (multiple cause)	36	35
COVID-19 (underlying cause)	27	25
Chronic lower respiratory diseases	26	27
Cerebrovascular diseases	18	21
Diabetes mellitus	15	18
Nephritis, nephrotic syndrome and nephrosis	13	< 10
Alzheimer's disease	10	14
Influenza and pneumonia	< 10	< 10

Cause of Death	Deaths in Week Ending Sept. 3, 2022	Deaths in Week Ending Aug. 27, 2022
Alzheimer disease and dementia	40	42