Great Lakes Wire

There were 84 deaths with chronic lower respiratory disease listed as the underlying cause reported in Michigan during the week ending Sept. 10, 2022, a 2.3% decrease from the previous week, according to The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

In the week ending Sept. 10, 2022, there were 1,921 deaths in the state. 24% of deaths were caused by heart disease, 20% were from cancer and 8.3% were from COVID-19. Additionally, 7.6% 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 Sept. 10, 2022	Deaths in Week Ending Sept. 3, 2022
Heart disease	461	443
Malignant neoplasms (cancerous tumor)	384	413
Cerebrovascular diseases	116	115
COVID-19 (multiple cause)	98	93
Chronic lower respiratory diseases	84	86
Alzheimer's disease	69	75
COVID-19 (underlying cause)	62	61
Diabetes mellitus	54	64
Nephritis, nephrotic syndrome and nephrosis	41	50
Influenza and pneumonia	22	17

Cause of Death	Deaths in Week Ending Sept. 10, 2022	Deaths in Week Ending Sept. 3, 2022
Alzheimer disease and dementia	146	148