Natural State News

There were 194 deaths with COVID-19 listed as the underlying cause reported in Arkansas during the week ending September 4, a 1 percent increase over the previous week, according to The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

In the week ending September 4, there were 846 deaths in the state. 17.1 percent of deaths were caused by heart disease, 16.8 percent were from cancer and 47.9 percent were from COVID-19. Additionally, 6.3 percent 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	Number of Deaths 2021-09-04	Number of Deaths 2021-08-28
COVID-19 (multiple cause)	211	213
COVID-19 (underlying cause)	194	192
Heart disease	145	179
Malignant neoplasms (cancerous tumor)	142	143
Chronic lower respiratory diseases	38	43
Cerebrovascular diseases	33	32
Alzheimer's disease	25	30
Diabetes mellitus	23	37
Nephritis, nephrotic syndrome and nephrosis	13	< 10
Influenza and pneumonia	11	11

Cause of Death	Number of Deaths 2021-09-04	Number of Deaths 2021-08-28
Alzheimer disease and dementia	53	55