Grand Canyon Times

There were 19 deaths with influenza and pneumonia listed as the underlying cause reported in Arizona during the week ending Nov. 5, 2022, a 11.8% increase over the previous week, according to The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

In the week ending Nov. 5, 2022, there were 1,400 deaths in the state. 19.9% of deaths were caused by heart disease, 19.1% were from cancer and 5.4% were from COVID-19. Additionally, 8.8% 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 Nov. 5, 2022	Deaths in Week Ending Oct. 29, 2022
Heart disease	278	293
Malignant neoplasms (cancerous tumor)	268	243
Cerebrovascular diseases	86	61
Chronic lower respiratory diseases	82	62
Alzheimer's disease	53	67
Diabetes mellitus	49	43
COVID-19 (multiple cause)	44	33
COVID-19 (underlying cause)	31	18
Influenza and pneumonia	19	17
Nephritis, nephrotic syndrome and nephrosis	16	13

Cause of Death	Deaths in Week Ending Nov. 5, 2022	Deaths in Week Ending Oct. 29, 2022
Alzheimer disease and dementia	123	131