Bluegrass Times

There were 45 deaths with COVID-19 listed as the underlying cause reported in Kentucky during the week ending Oct. 1, 2022, a 18.4% increase over the previous week, according to The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

In the week ending Oct. 1, 2022, there were 1,004 deaths in the state. 20.8% of deaths were caused by heart disease, 21% were from cancer and 11.8% were from COVID-19. Additionally, 8.2% 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	Deaths in Week Ending Oct. 1, 2022	Deaths in Week Ending Sept. 24, 2022
Malignant neoplasms (cancerous tumor)	211	188
Heart disease	209	210
COVID-19 (multiple cause)	73	71
Chronic lower respiratory diseases	60	51
COVID-19 (underlying cause)	45	38
Cerebrovascular diseases	44	53
Nephritis, nephrotic syndrome and nephrosis	29	26
Alzheimer's disease	26	29
Diabetes mellitus	25	25
Influenza and pneumonia	10	< 10

Cause of Death	Deaths in Week Ending Oct. 1, 2022	Deaths in Week Ending Sept. 24, 2022
Alzheimer disease and dementia	82	93