Bluegrass Times

There were 32 deaths with COVID-19 listed as the underlying cause reported in Kentucky in the week ending Dec. 17, making up 4.1% of total deaths by all causes in Kentucky, according to The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

In the week ending Dec. 17, there were 775 deaths in the state. 22.3% of deaths were caused by heart disease, 20.3% were from cancer and 10.8% were from COVID-19. Additionally, 13.3% 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
Heart disease	173	22.3
Malignant neoplasms (cancerous tumor)	157	20.3
Chronic lower respiratory diseases	57	7.4
COVID-19 (multiple cause)	52	6.7
Cerebrovascular diseases	38	4.9
COVID-19 (underlying cause)	32	4.1
Influenza and pneumonia	29	3.7
Alzheimer's disease	21	2.7
Diabetes mellitus	19	2.5
Nephritis, nephrotic syndrome and nephrosis	14	1.8

Cause of Death	Number of Deaths	% of Total Deaths
Alzheimer disease and dementia	103	13.3