Magnolia State News

There were 20 deaths with COVID-19 listed as a contributing cause reported in Mississippi during the week ending April 9, 2022, a 17.6% increase over the previous week, according to The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

In the week ending April 9, 2022, there were 462 deaths in the state. 26.2% of deaths were caused by heart disease, 19.3% were from cancer and 4.3% 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 April 9, 2022	Deaths in Week Ending April 2, 2022
Heart disease	121	139
Malignant neoplasms (cancerous tumor)	89	85
Chronic lower respiratory diseases	38	19
Cerebrovascular diseases	27	33
Alzheimer's disease	25	16
COVID-19 (multiple cause)	20	17
Diabetes mellitus	17	12
Influenza and pneumonia	< 10	12
Nephritis, nephrotic syndrome and nephrosis	< 10	< 10
COVID-19 (underlying cause)	< 10	11

Cause of Death	Deaths in Week Ending April 9, 2022	Deaths in Week Ending April 2, 2022
Alzheimer disease and dementia	40	37