Buckeye Reporter

There were 57 deaths with COVID-19 listed as a contributing cause reported in Ohio in the week ending Sept. 17, making up 5.2% of total deaths by all causes in Ohio, according to The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

In the week ending Sept. 17, there were 1,090 deaths in the state. 15.8% of deaths were caused by heart disease, 22.5% were from cancer and 8.8% were from COVID-19.

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	% of Total Deaths
Malignant neoplasms (cancerous tumor)	245	22.5
Heart disease	172	15.8
Cerebrovascular diseases	62	5.7
Chronic lower respiratory diseases	57	5.2
COVID-19 (multiple cause)	57	5.2
Alzheimer's disease	54	5
COVID-19 (underlying cause)	39	3.6
Diabetes mellitus	29	2.7
Nephritis, nephrotic syndrome and nephrosis	22	2
Influenza and pneumonia	< 10	< 0.9