Bluegrass Times

There were 39 deaths with COVID-19 listed as the underlying cause reported in Kentucky in the week ending Nov. 5, making up 3.8% of total deaths by all causes in Kentucky, according to The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

In the week ending Nov. 5, there were 1,034 deaths in the state. 19.4% of deaths were caused by heart disease, 19.5% were from cancer and 9.9% were from COVID-19. Additionally, 9.2% 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	% of Total Deaths
Malignant neoplasms (cancerous tumor)	202	19.5
Heart disease	201	19.4
COVID-19 (multiple cause)	63	6.1
Chronic lower respiratory diseases	51	4.9
Cerebrovascular diseases	42	4.1
COVID-19 (underlying cause)	39	3.8
Diabetes mellitus	30	2.9
Alzheimer's disease	30	2.9
Nephritis, nephrotic syndrome and nephrosis	25	2.4
Influenza and pneumonia	14	1.4

Cause of Death	Number of Deaths	% of Total Deaths
Alzheimer disease and dementia	95	9.2