Magnolia State News

There were 18 deaths with COVID-19 listed as a contributing cause reported in Mississippi during the week ending Oct. 22, 2022, a 41.9% decrease from the previous week, according to The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

In the week ending Oct. 22, 2022, there were 674 deaths in the state. 25.2% of deaths were caused by heart disease, 17.8% were from cancer and 2.7% were from COVID-19. Additionally, 8.2% 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. 22, 2022	Deaths in Week Ending Oct. 15, 2022
Heart disease	170	165
Malignant neoplasms (cancerous tumor)	120	125
Chronic lower respiratory diseases	41	45
Cerebrovascular diseases	32	28
Alzheimer's disease	26	32
Diabetes mellitus	21	29
Nephritis, nephrotic syndrome and nephrosis	19	10
Influenza and pneumonia	18	15
COVID-19 (multiple cause)	18	31
COVID-19 (underlying cause)	< 10	15

Cause of Death	Deaths in Week Ending Oct. 22, 2022	Deaths in Week Ending Oct. 15, 2022
Alzheimer disease and dementia	55	51