Great Lakes Wire

There were 56 deaths with COVID-19 listed as the underlying cause reported in Michigan in the week ending Dec. 3, making up 2.8% of total deaths by all causes in Michigan, according to The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

In the week ending Dec. 3, there were 1,978 deaths in the state. 24.3% of deaths were caused by heart disease, 19.1% were from cancer and 7.1% were from COVID-19. Additionally, 7.4% 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	481	24.3
Malignant neoplasms (cancerous tumor)	377	19.1
Chronic lower respiratory diseases	123	6.2
Cerebrovascular diseases	89	4.5
COVID-19 (multiple cause)	85	4.3
Diabetes mellitus	74	3.7
Alzheimer's disease	68	3.4
COVID-19 (underlying cause)	56	2.8
Nephritis, nephrotic syndrome and nephrosis	36	1.8
Influenza and pneumonia	25	1.3

Cause of Death	Number of Deaths	% of Total Deaths
Alzheimer disease and dementia	147	7.4