Natural State News

There were 20 deaths with COVID-19 listed as the underlying cause reported in Arkansas during the week ending Sept. 24, 2022, a 17.6% increase over the previous week, according to The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

In the week ending Sept. 24, 2022, there were 605 deaths in the state. 24.1% of deaths were caused by heart disease, 18% were from cancer and 8.6% were from COVID-19. Additionally, 7.6% 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 Sept. 24, 2022	Deaths in Week Ending Sept. 17, 2022
Heart disease	146	178
Malignant neoplasms (cancerous tumor)	109	122
Chronic lower respiratory diseases	46	44
COVID-19 (multiple cause)	32	29
Cerebrovascular diseases	24	36
Alzheimer's disease	21	23
COVID-19 (underlying cause)	20	17
Nephritis, nephrotic syndrome and nephrosis	17	19
Diabetes mellitus	15	24
Influenza and pneumonia	< 10	14

Cause of Death	Deaths in Week Ending Sept. 24, 2022	Deaths in Week Ending Sept. 17, 2022
Alzheimer disease and dementia	46	54