Bluegrass Times

There were 21 deaths with diabetes mellitus listed as the underlying cause reported in Kentucky during the week ending Jan. 15, a 12.5 percent decrease from the previous week, according to The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

In the week ending Jan. 15, there were 689 deaths in the state. 19.7 percent of deaths were caused by heart disease, 19.2 percent were from cancer and 39.3 percent were from COVID-19. Additionally, 7.7 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 2022-01-15	Number of Deaths 2022-01-08
COVID-19 (multiple cause)	148	164
Heart disease	136	167
Malignant neoplasms (cancerous tumor)	132	160
COVID-19 (underlying cause)	123	143
Chronic lower respiratory diseases	46	58
Diabetes mellitus	21	24
Cerebrovascular diseases	20	29
Alzheimer's disease	18	26
Nephritis, nephrotic syndrome and nephrosis	14	16
Influenza and pneumonia	< 10	14

Cause of Death	Number of Deaths 2022-01-15	Number of Deaths 2022-01-08
Alzheimer disease and dementia	53	74