Grand Canyon Times

There were 256 deaths with COVID-19 listed as a contributing cause reported in Arizona during the week ending November 6, a 5.2 percent decrease from the previous week, according to The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

In the week ending November 6, there were 1,538 deaths in the state. 18 percent of deaths were caused by heart disease, 14.4 percent were from cancer and 32.2 percent were from COVID-19. Additionally, 8.9 percent 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	Number of Deaths 2021-11-06	Number of Deaths 2021-10-30
Heart disease	277	263
COVID-19 (multiple cause)	256	270
COVID-19 (underlying cause)	240	251
Malignant neoplasms (cancerous tumor)	222	241
Alzheimer's disease	69	49
Chronic lower respiratory diseases	69	60
Cerebrovascular diseases	64	57
Diabetes mellitus	38	50
Nephritis, nephrotic syndrome and nephrosis	15	17
Influenza and pneumonia	14	16

Cause of Death	Number of Deaths 2021-11-06	Number of Deaths 2021-10-30
Alzheimer disease and dementia	137	128