Magnolia State News

There were 25 deaths with COVID-19 listed as a contributing cause reported in Mississippi during the week ending Oct. 8, 2022, a 25% increase over the previous week, according to The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

In the week ending Oct. 8, 2022, there were 661 deaths in the state. 23.1% of deaths were caused by heart disease, 17.7% were from cancer and 6.4% were from COVID-19. Additionally, 8.5% 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. 8, 2022	Deaths in Week Ending Oct. 1, 2022
Heart disease	153	159
Malignant neoplasms (cancerous tumor)	117	124
Chronic lower respiratory diseases	41	32
Cerebrovascular diseases	40	33
Alzheimer's disease	38	32
COVID-19 (multiple cause)	25	20
Nephritis, nephrotic syndrome and nephrosis	20	10
COVID-19 (underlying cause)	17	13
Diabetes mellitus	14	23
Influenza and pneumonia	< 10	< 10

Cause of Death	Deaths in Week Ending Oct. 8, 2022	Deaths in Week Ending Oct. 1, 2022
Alzheimer disease and dementia	56	50