Magnolia State News

There were 32 deaths with chronic lower respiratory disease listed as the underlying cause reported in Mississippi during the week ending Oct. 1, 2022, no changes from the previous week, according to The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

In the week ending Oct. 1, 2022, there were 621 deaths in the state. 25.6% of deaths were caused by heart disease, 20% were from cancer and 5.3% were from COVID-19. Additionally, 8.1% 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 Oct. 1, 2022	Deaths in Week Ending Sept. 24, 2022
Heart disease	159	164
Malignant neoplasms (cancerous tumor)	124	121
Cerebrovascular diseases	33	36
Alzheimer's disease	32	34
Chronic lower respiratory diseases	32	32
Diabetes mellitus	23	23
COVID-19 (multiple cause)	20	37
COVID-19 (underlying cause)	13	22
Nephritis, nephrotic syndrome and nephrosis	10	11
Influenza and pneumonia	< 10	10

Cause of Death	Deaths in Week Ending Oct. 1, 2022	Deaths in Week Ending Sept. 24, 2022
Alzheimer disease and dementia	50	58