Buckeye Reporter

There were 512 deaths with COVID-19 listed as the underlying cause reported in Ohio during the week ending October 23, a 9.5 percent decrease from the previous week, according to The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

In the week ending October 23, there were 2,854 deaths in the state. 17.1 percent of deaths were caused by heart disease, 16.7 percent were from cancer and 37.2 percent were from COVID-19. Additionally, 7.3 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 2021-10-23	Number of Deaths 2021-10-16
COVID-19 (multiple cause)	551	624
COVID-19 (underlying cause)	512	566
Heart disease	489	537
Malignant neoplasms (cancerous tumor)	477	487
Cerebrovascular diseases	131	142
Chronic lower respiratory diseases	117	133
Alzheimer's disease	98	100
Diabetes mellitus	69	81
Nephritis, nephrotic syndrome and nephrosis	42	33
Influenza and pneumonia	28	25

Cause of Death	Number of Deaths 2021-10-23	Number of Deaths 2021-10-16
Alzheimer disease and dementia	207	226