Magnolia State News

There were less than 10 deaths with influenza and pneumonia listed as the underlying cause reported in Mississippi during the week ending June 17, a decrease from the previous week, according to The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

In the week ending June 17, there were 605 deaths in the state. 24.5% of deaths were caused by heart disease, 23% were from cancer and less than 1.7% 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 June 17	Deaths in Week Ending June 10
Heart disease	148	173
Malignant neoplasms (cancerous tumor)	139	121
Alzheimer's disease	33	26
Cerebrovascular diseases	32	34
Chronic lower respiratory diseases	30	33
Diabetes mellitus	15	22
Nephritis, nephrotic syndrome and nephrosis	14	11
Influenza and pneumonia	< 10	10
COVID-19 (underlying cause)	< 10	< 10
COVID-19 (multiple cause)	< 10	10

Cause of Death	Deaths in Week Ending June 17	Deaths in Week Ending June 10
Alzheimer disease and dementia	49	52