Buckeye Reporter

There were 63 deaths with COVID-19 listed as the underlying cause reported in Ohio during the week ending March 19, 2022, a 29.2% decrease from the previous week, according to The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

In the week ending March 19, 2022, there were 1,631 deaths in the state. 20% of deaths were caused by heart disease, 18.1% were from cancer and 8.8% 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 March 19, 2022	Deaths in Week Ending March 12, 2022
Heart disease	327	411
Malignant neoplasms (cancerous tumor)	296	328
Cerebrovascular diseases	88	105
Chronic lower respiratory diseases	84	98
COVID-19 (multiple cause)	81	119
Alzheimer's disease	63	77
COVID-19 (underlying cause)	63	89
Diabetes mellitus	50	57
Nephritis, nephrotic syndrome and nephrosis	34	42
Influenza and pneumonia	19	29

Cause of Death	Deaths in Week Ending March 19, 2022	Deaths in Week Ending March 12, 2022
Alzheimer disease and dementia	144	177