Bluegrass Times

There were 51 deaths with chronic lower respiratory disease listed as the underlying cause reported in Kentucky during the week ending September 11, a 17.7 percent decrease from the previous week, according to The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

In the week ending September 11, there were 1,251 deaths in the state. 16.6 percent of deaths were caused by heart disease, 14.9 percent were from cancer and 52.4 percent were from COVID-19. Additionally, 8 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 2021-09-11	Number of Deaths 2021-09-04
COVID-19 (multiple cause)	341	358
COVID-19 (underlying cause)	315	344
Heart disease	208	201
Malignant neoplasms (cancerous tumor)	187	198
Chronic lower respiratory diseases	51	62
Cerebrovascular diseases	43	53
Alzheimer's disease	37	31
Nephritis, nephrotic syndrome and nephrosis	30	24
Diabetes mellitus	29	36
Influenza and pneumonia	13	14

Cause of Death	Number of Deaths 2021-09-11	Number of Deaths 2021-09-04
Alzheimer disease and dementia	100	85