Magnolia State News

There were 10 deaths with influenza and pneumonia listed as the underlying cause reported in Mississippi during the week ending July 30, 2022, an increase over the previous week, according to The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

In the week ending July 30, 2022, there were 654 deaths in the state. 23.7% of deaths were caused by heart disease, 17.7% were from cancer and 10.7% were from COVID-19. Additionally, 8.6% 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 July 30, 2022	Deaths in Week Ending July 23, 2022
Heart disease	155	168
Malignant neoplasms (cancerous tumor)	116	113
COVID-19 (multiple cause)	48	59
Chronic lower respiratory diseases	40	35
Cerebrovascular diseases	32	31
Diabetes mellitus	27	22
Nephritis, nephrotic syndrome and nephrosis	23	15
COVID-19 (underlying cause)	22	38
Alzheimer's disease	20	29
Influenza and pneumonia	10	< 10

Cause of Death	Deaths in Week Ending July 30, 2022	Deaths in Week Ending July 23, 2022
Alzheimer disease and dementia	56	42