Bluegrass Times

There were 56 deaths with chronic lower respiratory disease listed as the underlying cause reported in Kentucky during the week ending Aug. 6, 2022, a 33.3% increase over the previous week, according to The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

In the week ending Aug. 6, 2022, there were 892 deaths in the state. 23.4% of deaths were caused by heart disease, 23% were from cancer and 10.9% were from COVID-19. Additionally, 8% 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	Deaths in Week Ending Aug. 6, 2022	Deaths in Week Ending July 30, 2022
Heart disease	209	180
Malignant neoplasms (cancerous tumor)	205	172
COVID-19 (multiple cause)	60	75
Chronic lower respiratory diseases	56	42
COVID-19 (underlying cause)	37	48
Cerebrovascular diseases	35	36
Diabetes mellitus	26	28
Alzheimer's disease	22	33
Nephritis, nephrotic syndrome and nephrosis	15	17
Influenza and pneumonia	14	10

Cause of Death	Deaths in Week Ending Aug. 6, 2022	Deaths in Week Ending July 30, 2022
Alzheimer disease and dementia	71	85