Grand Canyon Times

There were 41 deaths with COVID-19 listed as a contributing cause reported in Arizona during the week ending March 26, 2022, a 32.8% decrease from the previous week, according to The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

In the week ending March 26, 2022, there were 935 deaths in the state. 19.9% of deaths were caused by heart disease, 17% were from cancer and 7.6% were from COVID-19. Additionally, 9.9% 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	186	229
Malignant neoplasms (cancerous tumor)	159	180
Chronic lower respiratory diseases	47	47
Alzheimer's disease	43	43
Cerebrovascular diseases	42	48
COVID-19 (multiple cause)	41	61
Diabetes mellitus	31	41
COVID-19 (underlying cause)	30	48
Nephritis, nephrotic syndrome and nephrosis	12	10
Influenza and pneumonia	10	< 10

Cause of Death	Deaths in Week Ending March 26, 2022	Deaths in Week Ending March 19, 2022
Alzheimer disease and dementia	93	95