Magnolia State News

There were 23 deaths with COVID-19 listed as a contributing cause reported in Mississippi during the week ending March 19, 2022, a 54.9% decrease from the previous week, according to The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

In the week ending March 19, 2022, there were 472 deaths in the state. 30.1% of deaths were caused by heart disease, 18.6% were from cancer and 7.8% were from COVID-19. Additionally, 8.7% 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	142	122
Malignant neoplasms (cancerous tumor)	88	99
Chronic lower respiratory diseases	35	36
Cerebrovascular diseases	28	24
COVID-19 (multiple cause)	23	51
Alzheimer's disease	22	29
COVID-19 (underlying cause)	14	35
Diabetes mellitus	12	19
Influenza and pneumonia	11	14
Nephritis, nephrotic syndrome and nephrosis	< 10	< 10

Cause of Death	Deaths in Week Ending March 19, 2022	Deaths in Week Ending March 12, 2022
Alzheimer disease and dementia	41	46