Grand Canyon Times

There were 21 deaths with COVID-19 listed as the underlying cause reported in Arizona during the week ending Nov. 12, 2022, a 32.3% decrease from the previous week, according to The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

In the week ending Nov. 12, 2022, there were 1,330 deaths in the state. 20.5% of deaths were caused by heart disease, 20.1% were from cancer and 4.6% were from COVID-19. Additionally, 10.5% 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. 12, 2022	Deaths in Week Ending Nov. 5, 2022
Heart disease	272	278
Malignant neoplasms (cancerous tumor)	267	268
Cerebrovascular diseases	70	86
Alzheimer's disease	63	53
Chronic lower respiratory diseases	62	82
COVID-19 (multiple cause)	40	44
Diabetes mellitus	38	49
COVID-19 (underlying cause)	21	31
Influenza and pneumonia	15	19
Nephritis, nephrotic syndrome and nephrosis	14	16

Cause of Death	Deaths in Week Ending Nov. 12, 2022	Deaths in Week Ending Nov. 5, 2022
Alzheimer disease and dementia	139	123