Great Lakes Wire

There were 13 deaths with influenza and pneumonia listed as the underlying cause reported in Michigan during the week ending Aug. 13, 2022, a 40.9% decrease from the previous week, according to The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

In the week ending Aug. 13, 2022, there were 1,873 deaths in the state. 24.6% of deaths were caused by heart disease, 21.2% were from cancer and 7.2% were from COVID-19. Additionally, 7.2% 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 Aug. 13, 2022	Deaths in Week Ending Aug. 6, 2022
Heart disease	460	479
Malignant neoplasms (cancerous tumor)	397	388
Cerebrovascular diseases	116	111
COVID-19 (multiple cause)	88	85
Chronic lower respiratory diseases	85	97
Diabetes mellitus	60	46
Alzheimer's disease	53	80
COVID-19 (underlying cause)	47	47
Nephritis, nephrotic syndrome and nephrosis	35	34
Influenza and pneumonia	13	22

Cause of Death	Deaths in Week Ending Aug. 13, 2022	Deaths in Week Ending Aug. 6, 2022
Alzheimer disease and dementia	134	163