Bluegrass Times

There were 196 deaths with COVID-19 listed as a contributing cause reported in Kentucky during the week ending Jan. 29, a 13.7 percent decrease from the previous week, according to The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

In the week ending Jan. 29, there were 680 deaths in the state. 17.1 percent of deaths were caused by heart disease, 16.3 percent were from cancer and 54 percent were from COVID-19. Additionally, 9.7 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 2022-01-29	Number of Deaths 2022-01-22
COVID-19 (multiple cause)	196	227
COVID-19 (underlying cause)	171	200
Heart disease	116	153
Malignant neoplasms (cancerous tumor)	111	167
Chronic lower respiratory diseases	36	53
Cerebrovascular diseases	25	39
Alzheimer's disease	21	35
Diabetes mellitus	19	26
Influenza and pneumonia	< 10	< 10
Nephritis, nephrotic syndrome and nephrosis	< 10	13

Cause of Death	Number of Deaths 2022-01-29	Number of Deaths 2022-01-22
Alzheimer disease and dementia	66	72