Buckeye Reporter

There were 13 deaths with COVID-19 listed as the underlying cause reported in Ohio during the week ending June 24, a 8.3% increase over the previous week, according to The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

In the week ending June 24, there were 2,232 deaths in the state. 22.1% of deaths were caused by heart disease, 20.8% were from cancer and 1.4% were from COVID-19. Additionally, 9.1% 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 June 24	Deaths in Week Ending June 17
Heart disease	494	520
Malignant neoplasms (cancerous tumor)	464	490
Cerebrovascular diseases	126	131
Chronic lower respiratory diseases	122	141
Alzheimer's disease	90	82
Diabetes mellitus	71	69
Nephritis, nephrotic syndrome and nephrosis	39	43
COVID-19 (multiple cause)	19	19
Influenza and pneumonia	17	25
COVID-19 (underlying cause)	13	12

Cause of Death	Deaths in Week Ending June 24	Deaths in Week Ending June 17
Alzheimer disease and dementia	202	193