Buckeye Reporter

There were 22 deaths with influenza and pneumonia listed as the underlying cause reported in Ohio during the week ending Jan. 15, a 56.9 percent decrease from the previous week, according to The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

In the week ending Jan. 15, there were 2,343 deaths in the state. 15.2 percent of deaths were caused by heart disease, 14.1 percent were from cancer and 57.4 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 2022-01-15	Number of Deaths 2022-01-08
COVID-19 (multiple cause)	695	868
COVID-19 (underlying cause)	649	803
Heart disease	357	514
Malignant neoplasms (cancerous tumor)	331	405
Cerebrovascular diseases	104	112
Alzheimer's disease	91	98
Chronic lower respiratory diseases	80	130
Diabetes mellitus	51	82
Nephritis, nephrotic syndrome and nephrosis	29	50
Influenza and pneumonia	22	51

Cause of Death	Number of Deaths 2022-01-15	Number of Deaths 2022-01-08
Alzheimer disease and dementia	172	201