Grand Canyon Times

There were 64 deaths with chronic lower respiratory disease listed as the underlying cause reported in Arizona during the week ending Aug. 27, 2022, a 33.3% increase over the previous week, according to The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

In the week ending Aug. 27, 2022, there were 1,217 deaths in the state. 19.6% of deaths were caused by heart disease, 19.3% were from cancer and 3.6% were from COVID-19. Additionally, 9.3% 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 Aug. 27, 2022	Deaths in Week Ending Aug. 20, 2022
Heart disease	238	252
Malignant neoplasms (cancerous tumor)	235	255
Cerebrovascular diseases	65	64
Chronic lower respiratory diseases	64	48
Alzheimer's disease	47	52
Diabetes mellitus	36	45
COVID-19 (multiple cause)	28	41
COVID-19 (underlying cause)	16	23
Nephritis, nephrotic syndrome and nephrosis	15	15
Influenza and pneumonia	12	17

Cause of Death	Deaths in Week Ending Aug. 27, 2022	Deaths in Week Ending Aug. 20, 2022
Alzheimer disease and dementia	113	122